WASHINGTON, March 30 (Xinhuanet) -- A US appeals court has agreed to consider an emergency motion by Terri Schiavo's parents requesting a new hearing on whether to reconnect the feeding tube for their severely brain-damaged daughter, it is reported Wednesday.

    The 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals granted Bob and Mary Schindler's request late Tuesday to file the new petition, without saying when it would decide whether to grant the full hearing of all 12 judges.

    The victory for the Schindlers only gave them the slightest hope of saving their daughter as Schiavo approached her 13th day without water and food.

    The appeals court, which has declined previous petitions three times in the case, set a March 26 deadline for the Schindlers to file the petition.

    Doctors removed Schiavo's feeding tube on March 18 following the ruling of the presiding judge. Her parents have suffered a string of legal setbacks since, both in state and federal courts, to get her feeding tube reconnected.

    Schiavo, 41, has been in a persistent vegetative state since a sudden heart attack in 1990 which cut oxygen to her brain. Her parents have engaged in a seven-year court battle with her husband and legal guardian Michael Schiavo over her fate. Michael Schiavo has urged the removal of his wife's feeding tube, saying she would rather die in her condition. But the Schindlers insisted that their daughter be kept alive. Enditem