'Bali bombings part of war on US'

A young Muslim militant went on trial for his life yesterday accused of masterminding the deadly Bali bomb attacks that prosecutors say were part of a plan to wage war on the United States.

Imam Samudra, 33, was charged with plotting, organising and carrying out crimes of terror and causing mass casualties in the bombings last October 12. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of death.

Wearing a white Muslim cap and shirt, Samudra greeted the panel of judges in Arabic and then abruptly shouted "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest) at his lawyers and waved at them.

Prosecutor I Nyoman Dila read the 43-page indictment as Samudra sat in a swivel chair at the centre of the makeshift court in Denpasar, capital of the resort island.

Dila said Samudra, a computer expert, chaired several planning meetings leading up to the nightclub attacks which killed more than 200 people, mostly young, foreign revellers.

"The defendant said there would be a big project to wage war against the United States and in the meeting several bombing targets in Bali were plotted," Dila said, reading from the indictment.

The trial was later adjourned until Thursday. Prosecutors said there would be 220 witnesses.

Many officials have blamed the attacks - the worst since the September 11, 2001, suicide attacks on New York and Washington - on the militant Islamic group Jemaah Islamiah but the indictment makes no mention of the network.

Lawyers for Samudra, who have said their client confessed to coming up with the idea for the attack, told the court they objected to the fact that new anti-terror laws cited in the case were retroactive.

They also protested against the involvement of foreign police in the investigation.