CAIRO: The case against three human rights activists was adjourned until July 17 on Saturday, after the judge approved defense lawyers’ request for an adjournment.

Ahmed Seif El-Islam Hamad and Gamal Eid, directors of the Hisham Mubarak Law Center (HMLC) and Arab Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) respectively, have been charged with libel, blackmail and misuse of communications.

Blogger Amr Gharbeia has been charged with libel and misuse of communications.

The case, which the El-Khalifa misdemeanors court began hearing in May, has been brought by judge Abdel-Fatah Murad, who in 2007 ANHRI accused of plagiarizing 50 pages of an ANHRI report on internet freedom in his book, “Scientific and Legal Principles of Blogs.”

In a statement issued last month Human Rights Watch called for charges against the three men to be dropped, saying that criminal defamation laws “are increasingly viewed as inconsistent with the right to freedom of expression.”