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05/18/2004:

"Suspected Mercenaries held in Zimbabwe Seek South Africa Trial"

Johannesburg - A group of 70 suspected mercenaries held in Zimbabwe on charges of plotting a coup in Equatorial Guinea are preparing to take the government to court unless it helps them, a lawyer said on Tuesday.

The men, who have been in a Harare jail for the past two months, have asked President Thabo Mbeki's government to either seek their extradition to South Africa or provide assurances that they will not be handed over for trial in Equatorial Guinea, lawyer Alwyn Griebenow said.

The government was notified in an official letter served on Monday and Tuesday that it has 24 hours to respond to the request or face court action. "If we do not receive the undertakings... we will proceed with an urgent matter in the Pretoria High Court," Griebenow told AFP, adding that the petition could be heard next week. www.news24.com