Indonesian prosecutors accused Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir of failing to prevent militants allegedly under his leadership from carrying out terror attacks, including the Bali bombings.

Chief prosecutor Salman Maryadi insisted that Bashir as the leader of the Al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah group knew of his subordinates' activities, including bomb-making classes at a militant training camp in the Philippines.

"Even though the defendant did not take part in the bombings, the defendant knew that military training at the Hudaibiyah camp provided lessons in bomb-making... that the defendant as Jemaah Islamiyah emir [leader] was aware of the consequences resulting from the training," Maryadi said.

"But the defendant did not forbid Jemaah Islamiyah members to carry out bombings," he told Bashir's terrorism trial.

Maryadi reiterated the prosecution's demand that Bashir be sentenced to eight years in jail.

Bashir is on trial for his alleged link to a series of deadly bombings in recent years blamed on Jemaah Islamiyah, including the 2002 Bali nightclub attacks in which 202 people were killed.

Bashir, 66, has rejected the charges, accusing President George W. Bush of being behind the allegations to prevent him from campaigning for Islamic law, or Sharia.

Prosecutors dropped a primary charge that Bashir and his supporters actually planned the attacks or that Bashir incited his followers to engage in terrorism, saying they had insufficient evidence.

However they said evidence showed he was guilty of involvement in acts of terrorism.

Bashir, who was cleared in 2003 of leading Jemaah Islamiyah, was released from jail in April last year after serving a sentence for an immigration offence.

He was immediately rearrested by police, who said they had new evidence of terror links and of his leadership of Jemaah Islamiyah.

Prosecutors in their indictment said Bashir, as Jemaah Islamiyah chief, visited a rebel training camp in the Philippines in April 2000 and relayed a "ruling from Osama bin Laden which permitted attacks and killings of Americans and their allies." Jemaah Islamiyah has been blamed for numerous attacks including a suicide bombing outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta last September that killed 11 people.

The trial resumes Friday and a verdict is expected as early as next week.