The trial of what was the United States' largest Muslim charity began on Tuesday, with federal prosecutors saying the group aimed to destroy Israel and the defense claiming its leaders simply sought advice on staying true to their humanitarian mission from Palestinian groups.

The trial of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development is expected to last several months and caps an FBI investigation that lasted more than a decade.

The organization and five of its top officials are charged with aiding
te

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terrorists, conspiracy and money laundering.

Prosecutor James T. Jacks said in his opening statement Tuesday that the foundation was created to raise money for the Palestinian militant group Hamas. "The charity's leaders lied about their purpose because to tell the truth is to reveal what they were all about - the destruction of the state of Israel and replacing it with a Palestinian Islamic state," he said.

Some of the charity's money went to support the families of suicide bombers, according to authorities.

Defense attorneys say Holy Land supported humanitarian efforts in Palestinian neighborhoods and did not knowingly aid Hamas.

"Holy Land had nothing to do with politics. Its focus was on children in need," said Nancy Hollander, lawyer for Holy Land chief executive Shukri Abu Baker, in her opening statement.

Defense lawyers said Holy Land approached U.S. officialsfor information on how to stay on the right side of the law while working in the Middle East. They said prosecutor Jacks was among the officials approached by the group.

"They were never told to stop working with anyone," said Hollander. "Defense lawyers also said that the government's U.S. Agency for International Development worked with some of the same Middle Eastern charity groups that Holy Land did, and that none of the groups Holy Land worked with appeared on terrorism watch lists," she added.

Contact with Hamas has been illegal since 1995, when former U.S. President Bill Clinton designated it a terrorist group.

Hamas won Palestinian legislative elections last year and seized control of Gaza this year. Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' rival Fatah movement heads a moderate government in the West Bank.

The five men on trial are not accused of being terrorists. Rather, they are charged with funneling $36 million to individuals and groups tied to Hamas, including $12.4 million sent after Clinton's designation.

Testimony is scheduled to begin Wednesday.

Federal agents raided the foundation's offices in December 2001. President George W. Bush personally announced the seizure of the charity's assets, declaring that the net is closing on those who fund terrorism.

Outside the courthouse, Holy Land supporters charged that the case is an
effort to intimidate U.S. Muslims. In court papers, prosecutors listed about 300 Muslim individuals and groups as unindicted co-conspirators, ranging from the founder of Hamas to people who raised money for Holy Land.

"We're all being lumped into one main aggregate of supporting terrorists," said Mahdi Bray, an official with the Muslim American Society, adding "A sizable portion of the American Muslim community is concerned the government has overreached."

Prosecutors on Tuesday dropped six of the 42 counts in the 2004 indictment against the men related to specific financial transactions.