Firebrand Islamic cleric Abu Bakar Bashir told his terrorism trial that religious extremists were wrong to stage attacks in Indonesia because the world's largest Muslim-populated country was not at war with anyone.

Bashir said if Muslims wanted to wage jihad or holy war against the United States, they should go to countries like Afghanistan.

The 66-year-old hardline preacher is on trial for inciting followers to stage the Bali bombings and a deadly attack on the Jakarta Marriott hotel. He could face the death penalty if convicted.

"I don't agree with the Marriott bombers. Maybe their intention was to defend Islam but their method was wrong," Bashir told the court. "If they want to fight America they should go to Afghanistan. Jihad by taking up arms should only be carried out in conflict areas," he said.

Bashir again denied he was the chief of Jemaah Islamiyah, an extremist group said to have links to Al-Qaeda and blamed for the Bali and Marriott bombings as well as a string of other attacks in Indonesia in recent years.

He said he once wrote an article about suicide attacks but it was only for academic purposes.

Bashir accused the United States of waging an ideological war against Islam by spreading twisted interpretations of the religion. "That is why I'm against America and I call on the government to sever diplomatic relations with America. The move will be much more powerful than bombings," he said.

Bashir has maintained that his incarceration was demanded by the United States because he was critical of Washington's policies in the Islamic world.

One of Bashir's lawyers, Mohammad Assegaff, said prosecutors had failed in their attempt to link Bashir to Bali and the Marriot bombing because none of convicted bombers presented as witnesses linked the cleric to the attacks.

Bashir, who was cleared in 2003 of leading Jemaah Islamiyah, was released in April last year shortly after Indonesia's parliamentary polls. He was immediately rearrested by police, who said they had new evidence of terror links.

Prosecutors in their indictment said Bashir, as Jemaah Islamiyah chief, visited a rebel training camp in April 2000 and relayed a "ruling from Osama bin Laden which permitted attacks and killings of Americans and their allies." He has denied making such a visit.

The Bali bombings killed 202 people and the Jakarta Marriott hotel strike in August 2003 left 12 dead. Jemaah Islamiyah has also been blamed for a suicide attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta last September which killed 11.