A Yemeni court has postponed the trial of a U.S. citizen arrested for suspected ties to al-Qaida militants and charged with the murder of a state security officer during a failed escape attempt.
Sharif Mobley was set to be tried Wednesday on charges of killing one of his guards and wounding another while attempting to escape from a hospital where he was receiving treatment in March.
The judge in Mobley's hearing adjourned his trial until November 10.
The 26-year-old American was among 11 al-Qaida suspects arrested in the Yemeni capital, Sana'a, earlier this year. He was shot in the leg during the security operation by Yemeni police.
U.S. officials say Mobley, who grew up in the eastern state of New Jersey, traveled to Yemen more than two years ago with the goal of joining a terror group and that the U.S. government was aware of his potential extremist ties before his arrest.
A U.S. company that owns several atomic power plants, PSEG, has said Mobley worked at two nuclear reactors in New Jersey and other facilities in the region. Company officials say he was not linked to any wrongdoing at the U.S. plants.
The Yemeni government has intensified its fight against al-Qaida after a local branch claimed responsibility for a failed bomb attack on a U.S.-bound airplane in December.
Some information for this report was provided by AP.
