U.S. officials attended detained American's hearing in UAE, State Dept says

U.S. embassy officials attended U.S. citizen and rights lawyer Asim Ghafoor's hearing in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, a State Department official said, adding that his next hearing was scheduled for Wednesday.

UAE authorities have said Ghafoor, a U.S. citizen and civil rights attorney based in Virginia, was arrested last month while transiting through Dubai airport based on an in absentia trial and conviction in May for tax evasion and money laundering.