An Indonesian militant suspected of close links to a wanted Malaysian fugitive went on trial today on charges that carry up to a 20-year jail term, a court official said.

Prosecutors at the district court in East Java's Malang charged Ahmad Basyir, 36, with "involvement in acts of terror" by hiding Noordin Mohammad Top and his now-slain compatriot Azahari Husin, Toto Wahyu Subiakto said.

He said prosecutors also charged Basyir with failing to report to authorities that he had met both men.

Both men were key members of the al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah regional extremist network, blamed for a series of terrorist attacks in the region including the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people.

Analysts have said they may have split off to form their own more militant group.

Azahari ( top picture ) was shot dead during a police raid in the nearby town of Batu last November but Noordin remains on the run and has repeatedly given police the slip.

Lack of seriousness

Fahmi Bachmid, a lawyer for Basyir, argued that the prosecution's indictment was obscure since it only accused his client of "having met a man named Noordin alias Benni" but did not specifically mention his full name.

"Who is this person they refer to as Noordin alias Benni? Does this person really exist?" Bachmid said.

"The crux of the matter is not this trial, but the police's lack of seriousness in capturing the so-called Noordin, which has caused innocent people including my client to be detained for no reason," he told AFP.

Indonesian police have said that Basyir was suspected of having hidden and provided a house for Noordin and Azahari, before the latter's death at a different house.

The pair were believed to have masterminded triple suicide bombings on Bali last year which killed 20 bystanders.