ALGIERS, Algeria - The trial of two religious converts accused of illegally promoting the Christian faith opened Wednesday in Muslim Algeria.

The defendants had been convicted in absentia for illegal practice of a non-Muslim religion in 2007 but asked for a new trial, as Algerian law allows, their lawyer said.

Rachid Mohammed Seghir, 40, and Jammal Dahmani, 36, both converted from Islam to Christianity and are charged with praying in a building that had not been granted a religious permit by authorities, the court said. They are also accused of proselytizing, or trying to spread the Christian faith among Muslims.