Thousands of militants rally behind Bashir

A member of Indonesia's militant Islamic Defenders Front prays during a rally in front of the JW Marriott Hotel bombing site in Jakarta, yesterday. PHOTO: REUTERS

About Muslim militants rallied yesterday in the city of Solo to support detained Indonesian cleric Abu Bakar Bashir, who allegedly heads the al-Qaeda-linked group accused in the deadly bombing at Jakarta's Marriott Hotel.

Bashir, in a speech read by an aide, urged people at the rally -- many carrying bamboo staves and wearing green paramilitary uniforms -- to fight for the adoption of Islamic law and to ignore being labeled "terrorists."

Listeners traveled from all over Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation.

Bashir, 64, is believed to be the founder of the Southeast Asian terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah. The group been blamed for various attacks, including Tuesday's hotel blast and the Oct. 12 Bali bombings that killed 202 people, 88 of them Australians.

A taxi driver who died of his injuries yesterday became the 11th fatality in the attack on the Jakarta Marriott. Nearly 150 people were injured.

Yesterday's rally was the first public display of solidarity with Bashir since the Marriott attack.

Bashir's demanded Islamic law in Indonesia, which has been a secular republic since its independence from the Netherlands in 1949.

"Muslim people, do not be afraid of being called a terrorist or a fundamentalist," the speech said.

Listeners "God is great!" Other speakers appealed for Bashir's release.

"Let us defend him and pray that he is being patient in prison," Irfan Awwas told the crowd in a stadium parking lot in Solo, about 600km east of Jakarta.

Bashir an extremist Islamic boarding school in the city, with help from the Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia -- or the Indonesian Jihad Fighters' Council.

Followers the rally sold hardline Muslim literature and videos showing alleged mistreatment of Muslims in Chechnya and the Middle East.

"Bashir is a true fighter, but he is not a terrorist. [US President George W.] Bush is a terrorist," said Umar Wayan, a Majelis Mujahidin member who was a guard at the rally.

Bashir accused of masterminding a series of Indonesian church bombings in 2000 and an alleged plot to assassinate President Megawati Sukarnoputri. He has repeatedly denied involvement in terrorist acts and says Jemaah Islamiyah doesn't exist.

He is currently on trial. A verdict in his trial is expected by October.

The Majelis Mujahidin, which claims 3,000 members, campaigns for the imposition of Islamic law.

Several the Majelis Mujahidin have been linked with Jemaah Islamiyah.