Pakistan court overturns convictions of those imprisoned for journalist Daniel Pearl's murder

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - A regional Pakistani court Thursday overturned the convictions of the men involved in the 2002 killing of U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl.

The ruling by two judges on the High Court of Sindh province can still be appealed to Pakistan's Supreme Court.

"As per the court's judgment, Omar Saeed Sheikh has been found guilty of kidnapping and not of murder," said the defendants' lawyer, Khawaja Naveed.

Pearl, a Wall Street Journal reporter, was kidnapped in January 2002 in Pakistan, where he was researching the connection between a radical Islamic preacher and Richard Reid, who attempted to blow up an airliner with explosives in his shoes.

The high-profile kidnapping and killing prompted outrage and put pressure on the Pakistani government to capture and prosecute the perpetrators.

Saeed, a British-born Pakistani who was implicated in other kidnappings, had been sentenced to death for Pearl's murder and kidnapping. The court Thursday overturned the murder conviction and downgraded the kidnapping charge, which carries a seven-year sentence. Because Saeed has served 18 years, he could be eligible for release.

The three other men convicted with Saeed - Fahad Naseem, a computer expert; Salman Saqib, a religious activist; and Sheikh Adil, a police officer - were ordered released by the court.

In a statement Thursday, the Wall Street Journal said: "We continue to seek justice for the murder of Daniel Pearl. Danny was a cherished colleague and we will always honor his memory and service."

Analysts say increased pressure on Pakistan to crack down on terrorist networks will probably trigger an appeal to the country's Supreme Court.

Muhammad Amir Rana, an Islamabad-based security analyst, predicted the government would keep Saeed in custody during the appeals process because of the high-profile nature of the case. Rana said the government could argue Saeed's release poses a threat to national security or bring additional charges against him.

In January 2002, Pearl was told he was meeting with a radical cleric when instead he was kidnapped by militants organized by Saeed. According to the Center of Public Integrity's Pearl Project, 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed then took over the operation and filmed the beheading of Pearl for al-Qaida propaganda purposes. Mohammed was captured in Pakistan in 2003 and is now held at Guantánamo Bay.

The murder has been seen as marking the beginning of a trend of militant groups targeting journalists in conflict zones. In 2014, the Islamic State filmed the beheadings of a number of its hostages, including journalist James Foley.

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The Washington Post's Paul Schemm in Dubai and Susannah George in London contributed to this report.