John Walker Lindh

The American who was captured with Taleban fighters in Afghanistan is pleading not guilty to 10 charges, including conspiracy to kill Americans abroad.

Twenty-one-year old John Walker Lindh, who also goes by the name John Walker, appeared in a federal court in the U.S. state of Virginia, Wednesday. He also is accused of training to fight with Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terrorist network. If convicted, Mr. Lindh could face life in prison.

U.S. District Judge TS Ellis said he would like jury selection to begin in August. He scheduled a hearing for Friday to set a trial date. Both the defense and the prosecution say the trial should not start until November. But Judge Ellis said that is too long to wait, saying he thinks the trial should start in September.

U.S. troops took custody of Mr. Lindh in December after a prison uprising at Mazar-e-Sharif in northern Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, a trial scheduled to begin in the same courthouse in October for Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person charged in the United States with directly participating in the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and DPA.

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