JAKARTA - A terror suspect held in Malaysia testified via TV link today that Abu Bakar Basyir heads the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) extremist group, bolstering the prosecution case against the Indonesian Muslim cleric.

"What I know is that Ustadz (teacher) Abu Bakar Basyir is currently the head of Jemaah Islamiah," said Ahmad Sajuli bin Adbul Rahman.

Sajuli also told Basyir's treason trial of links between JI and Muslim groups in the southern Philippines and Thailand. He said he sent JI members for weapons training in the Philippines and Afghanistan.

He said JI, as part of its "jihad" (holy war), was involved in bloody Muslim-Christian fighting which broke out in Indonesia's Maluku islands.

Church attacks

Police believe JI carried out a string of bombings in the region, including the Christmas Eve church attacks in Indonesia in 2000 which killed 19 people and last October's Bali bombings which killed 202 people.

Dozens of JI suspects have been arrested in several Southeast Asian countries over terror plots. The group, which aims to establish an Islamic state across much of Southeast Asia, is thought linked to al-Qaeda.

Judges, overruling objections from Basyir and his lawyers, allowed prosecutors for a second week to present televised testimony.

Last week three witnesses detained in Singapore testified that Basyir leads JI and would have authorised its bombings.

Basyir's lawyers boycotted today's hearing but the cleric himself was refused permission to leave the courtroom.

Basyir, 64, said the decision to allow teleconferences "has dismissed my hope for an objective trial," and read a book as witnesses appeared on four large screens. His lawyers have similar objections.

Askari wing

Sajuli, an Indonesian, said he was introduced to Basyir in Malaysia in 1989.

He said he himself was a former Darul Islam member (a rebel group fighting for an Indonesian Islamic state in the 1950s) and became a JI member in 1993. He was appointed in 1998 or 1999 by a man called Hambali ( photo ) to head its "askari" wing.

"My job was to help members of JI who are waging jihad to the southern Philippines or Afghanistan," Sajuli said.

Another JI witness in Basyir's trial has also previously said he trained at Camp Abubakar, which was operated by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

Sajuli said JI moved its headquarters to Indonesia after its co-founder Abdullah Sungkar died in 1999. Every member was required to donate five percent of his income to the group.

Asked if JI is linked to other regional Muslim organisations, Sajuli said: "Yes, there is in the Philippines, in Moro...in Thailand there is also a gathering led by Ismail Lutfi."

Sajuli said Hambali - JI's alleged operations chief at the time - had ordered the Christmas Eve and Bali bombings and had sent him to the Malukus to prepare for sending fighters.

Emir's approval

He testified that Imam Samudra ( photo ) and Mukhlas, two key Bali bombing suspects, are JI members and said Mukhlas replaced Hambali as operations chief when Hambali had to go on the run.

Asked if JI's emir or leader would know about every mission, Sajuli said: "An emir's approval is always sought."

Prosecutors want to prove that Basyir heads JI and that he tried to overthrow the Indonesian government through terrorism to establish an Islamic state.

They accuse him of authorising the Christmas Eve bombings but have not linked him to the Bali blasts.

A second detainee in Malaysia, Agung Diyadi, 47, said he reported only to Hambali. He said he was a sympathizer of Darul Islam but had never been sworn in as a JI member.

Diyadi, an Indonesian, said he had no knowledge of any plans by Basyir to overthrow the Indonesian government.

He said JI gives "assistance to oppressed people and military assistance to fight people who oppress Muslims."

Asked where, he replied: "The Malukus, Poso and the Philippines."

Poso in Indonesia's Central Sulawesi province was also the scene of Muslim-Christian clashes. The hearing was continuing.

The Malaysian government is holding more than 70 suspected JI members under the Internal Security Act which provides for detention without trial. - AFP