Okah wins right to call for public hearing

The suspected leader of Nigeria's main oil militant group has won the right to appeal to have his trial for treason and gun-running held in public, a move which could placate his well-armed supporters in the Niger Delta.

Henry Okah is one of the senior leaders of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend), a militant group which has cut Nigeria's oil output by around a fifth since early 2006 with a campaign of attacks on the oil industry, wrote Reuters.

Okah still commands loyalty from several armed factions in the delta and Nigeria has said his trial at a federal court in the central city of Jos must be held in camera for the sake of national security.

But the secrecy has angered his supporters.

Okah's lawyer, Wilson Ajuwa, said an appeals court had accepted his bid to have the case heard in public. He said the court had told both parties to file written briefs within 21 days and that it would consider the appeal in September.

"Once we file the briefs and we are able to convince the appeals court then the federal court will have to stop the secret trial," Ajuwa told Reuters.

The trial, which is due to resume on Monday, would continue in camera until the appeals court ruled, he said. Okah could face the death penalty if convicted.

Mend has made Okah's release a condition for suspending its campaign of sabotage and for taking part in peace talks planned by the government of President Umaru Yar'Adua.