Indonesian Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir Thursday was accused of having incited others to carry out last year's Jakarta Marriott Hotel bombing that killed 12 people.

He will face death penalty if convicted under the anti-terror law adopted after the Bali bombing in October 2002.

Prosecutor Salman Maryadi also indicted Ba'asyir with involvement in a sinister conspiracy for the acts of terror, which links the cleric with the Bali bombing that killed 202 people.

His second count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in jail under the criminal code, as the Constitutional Court has issued a ruling that the tough anti-terrorism laws can not be implemented retroactively.

The hearing was held at a makeshift courtroom at the Agriculture Ministry's compound in South Jakarta.

Ba'asyir, 65, asked the five-judge panel to ensure that his trial is free from influence of the United States and Australia.

"The judges must be vigilant over Allah's enemy, namely, the United States and Australia," said the cleric, who then cited several cases in which prosecutors were summoned by the US and Australian embassies whenever a terror suspect was acquitted.

Source: Xinhua