The opening hearing of a trial involving foreign pro-democracy activists and which has strained relations between Egypt and the United States, opened in Cairo on Sunday and was immediately adjourned, dpa reported.
A total of 43 people, including 19 Americans and two Germans, are accused of working for unlicensed non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and of receiving illegal foreign funds.
Only six of the defendants, all Egyptian nationals, turned up for the start of the trial, which took place amid tight security in the outskirts of the capital and was partly broadcast live on Egyptian state television.
Following a procedural session, the presiding judge, Mohammed Shukri, adjourned the trial to April 26 after defence lawyers asked for more time to examine the case.
The US defendants include Sam LaHood, the son of US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, who runs the Egypt office of the Washington-based International Republican Institute.
The United States has threatened to withhold 1.3 billion dollars in annual military aid to its key Arab ally because of the case.
Many of the US defendants have reportedly taken refuge inside the US embassy in Cairo after Egyptian authorities ordered a travel ban on all defendants.
The two Germans, who are also still in Egypt, work at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
In December, Egyptian prosecutors and police raided the offices of 17 NGOs across the country, detaining employees and seizing computer files.
Egyptian magistrates have accused the groups of meddling in politics and of violating the country's sovereignty.
Pro-democracy advocates say the crackdown was designed to smear civil society groups for exposing alleged abuses by Egypt's military-led government.
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