High court resumes hearing of defendants Thursday

The high court would resume its hearing session in the trial of seven men in South Sudan today morning, a source said.

The high court would resume its hearing session in the trial of seven men in South Sudan today morning, a source said.

The seven defendants include activist Peter Biar Ajak and businessman Kerbino Wol. Biar was charged with terrorism, after eight months in jail while Wol, in jail since April 2018, has been charged with public disorder, banditry, sabotage and possession of firearms.

A source, who preferred anonymity, told Radio Tamazuj that court hearings in the case against the seven defendants had to be postponed to Thursday after a commotion inside the courtroom in Juba on Monday.

He pointed out that the commotion occurred when Wol’s family members protested after their son was brought late in court by national security agents.

"What happened was that Wol was delayed, but when he was brought in, he was in bad health, which caused a lot of noise inside the court,” said the source.

Thursday’s court session, the source said, is expected to listen to Biar, adding that Wol already defended himself before court last week.

He further said an audio recording of Wol’s interview with VOA’s South Sudan in Focus programme after a standoff at the national security headquarters last year was played by the prosecution on Thursday last week.

In October 2018, South Sudanese authorities closed any bank accounts and other related financial accounts in the name of Wol.