Fifteen years sought for Jemaah Islamiah cleric

Indonesian prosecutors will today seek a 15-year sentence against the alleged leader of terror group Jemaah Islamiah, Abu Bakar…

Indonesian prosecutors will today seek a 15-year sentence against the alleged leader of terror group Jemaah Islamiah, Abu Bakar Bashir, on charges including treason.

The sentencing comes after last week's bombing of a Jakarta hotel, which Jemaah Islamiah is thought to have orchestrated.

The frail 64-year-old cleric has been charged with treason for using the Jemaah Islamiah militant Muslim network to spearhead efforts to overthrow the government during the 1993-2001 period. The maximum term is life in jail.

The charges include approving church bombings across Indonesia in 2000 that killed 19 people. Bashir has also been linked to an aborted plot to assassinate President Megawati Sukarnoputri when she was vice-president.

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The terror network is also thought to be behind the Bali bombing last year.