A COURT acquitted a Muslim cleric accused of heading an al-Qaida-linked Asian terror group and plotting to overthrow the government, giving a surprise verdict in a case seen as a test of Indonesia's willingness to fight terror.

An Indonesian court today jailed Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir for four years for involvement in a plot to overthrow the government and violating immigration laws.

In a lengthy and at times contradictory judgment, an Indonesian court ruled today that Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir knew of a plot to topple the government but that there was insufficient evidence he was head of terror network Jemaah Islamiyah.