INDONESIA: The alleged spiritual leader of al-Qaeda's main terrorist partner in south-east Asia, Abu Bakar Ba'aysir, yesterday went on trial in Jakarta for trying to overthrow the Indonesian government and establish a region-wide Islamic state.
Prosecutors alleged that Mr Ba'aysir, a Muslim cleric from central Java, helped found the Islamist organisation Jemaah Islamiyah while in exile in Malaysia from 1985 to 1999, that he became its emir, or spiritual leader, in 1999, and that he used his recruits to launch attacks across the region.
The main charges relate to the bombings of dozens of churches across Indonesia on Christmas Eve 2000 that killed 19 people; an aborted attempt to assassinate President Megawati Sukarnoputri when she was vice president; and a cancelled plan to attack western interests in Singapore.
Mr Ba'aysir (64) is not accused of participating in last October's Bali bombing, which killed 202 people. There is, however, a widespread belief that he did at the very least sanction the attack.
Three of the alleged ringleaders of the Bali bombing plot have known Mr Ba'aysir for years, are named as co-plotters in the church bombings, and are key prosecution witnesses in his trial.
Apart from confirming his identity, Mr Ba'aysir sat impassively during the 90-minute session, taking the odd note until asked whether he accepted the indictment. "I do not accept the charges," he said. "These are lies from America." Mr Ba'aysir denies that Jemaah Islamiyah even exists.
Mr Ba'aysir, who runs an Islamic boarding school, is also charged with immigration offences related to the falsification of identity papers.
- (Guardian Service)