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Witness: Bashir Contacted by Osama bin Laden


A jailed Islamic militant testifying in the Jakarta terrorism trial of Abu Bakar Bashir says the Muslim cleric was once invited by Osama bin Laden to live in Afghanistan.

Mohammad Rais told the court that he gave a message to Bashir from Osama bin Laden in 2001, asking the cleric to come to Afghanistan if he did not feel comfortable in Indonesia.

Earlier, another witness - jailed militant Yudi Lukito - testified that he heard Bashir give a speech to trainees at a terrorist camp in the southern Philippines in 2000.

Bashir is accused of involvement in several bombings, including the 2002 Bali nightclub attacks that killed 202 people, and last year's attack on a Jakarta luxury hotel.

Bashir denies any links to terrorism.

Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.

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