ISTANBUL, Turkey – A judge ejected a Syrian Al Qaeda suspect from his courtroom yesterday for contempt of court after the alleged terrorist, who was caught when explosives went off in his hide-out, refused to stand up on the opening day of his trial.

The secretive Loa’i Mohammad Haj Bakr al-Saqa, who used fake IDs and aliases even with his Al Qaeda contacts and had cosmetic surgery to conceal his features, is charged with trying to overthrow Turkey’s secular government, prosecutors said.

He is on trial with 72 other suspected Al Qaeda terrorists for alleged involvement in a series of suicide bombings that killed 58 people in Istanbul in 2003.

Mr. al-Saqa was captured with suspected accomplice Hamid Obysi in August when an alleged plot to attack Israeli cruise ships failed after an accidental explosion forced them to flee a safe house in the southern port of Antalya. Mr. Obysi, a Syrian, is also on trial but did not attend yesterday’s hearing because he was reported to be sick.

Judge Zafer Baskurt asked Mr. al-Saqa several times to stand up in court. “My beliefs prevent me from standing in front of people like you,” Mr. al-Saqa told the judge, who ordered him thrown out.

“I fought a jihad, I killed Americans, I will not stand up before you!” shouted Mr. al-Saqa, who chanted verses of the Koran as soldiers escorted him out.

Judge Baskurt also ordered a spectator detained for shouting in support of Mr. al-Saqa.