Ammon News - AMMAN (Petra) – Seven men who appeared on a video abusing the body of a man killed in a shooting with police in the southern city of Maan early last month went on trial on Tuesday at the state security court facing charges of racism.

The defendants pleaded not guilty as the trial got underway under presiding judge Ahmad Qatarneh and the membership of judges Ahmad Omari and Mekhled Raqqad.

The court listened to testimonies by prosecutor witnesses before the trial was postponed until Sunday to give time for defence attorneys to submit their evidence in the high-profile case.

The video posted on the internet showed the defendants screaming abusive words against the dead person, took pictures of their action on their mobile phones and loaded them to the internet, drawing a furious reaction from the victim's relatives and triggering riots in the southern city.

The defendants have been in custody since early June.