One of the alleged masterminds of the Madrid train bombings has denied any involvement in the attacks which killed 191 people in the Spanish capital in 2004.
Rabei Osman Sayed Ahmed said he did not recognise the charges and said he had no link to the attacks when he appeared in court this afternoon.
Mr Ahmed was arrested in June 2004 in Italy. A court in Milan sentenced him last November to 10 years in prison for membership of a terrorist organisation before returning him to Spain.
It is claimed that he spoke about organising the attacks during telephone conversations with associates that were recorded by Italian police.
A total of 29 people are accused of involvement in the bombing of four rush-hour trains three years ago, which left 191 dead 1,824 injured.
Seven of the suspects will face charges of murder and belonging to a terrorist group, while the other 22 defendants face a range of other terrorist charges.
The trial is to be broadcast live on Spanish television and is expected to last six months.
More than 600 witnesses and 107 experts have been called to testify in what prosecutors claim was an al-Qaeda-inspired attack by radical Islamists in retribution for Spain's participation in the US-led interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
There is ultra-tight security at the high court venue on the outskirts of the Spanish capital.
