Cleric tells court he had no role in bombings

Islamic cleric Abu Bakar Bashir formally denied in court today any involvement in the Bali and J W Marriott Hotel bombings, saying the attacks that killed 214 people ran counter to his principles.

Testifying at his trial in a court in Jakarta, Indonesia, the 66-year-old Bashir also denied he knew anything about Jemaah Islamiyah, the al-Qaida-linked regional terror group that he is accused of leading.