State TV broadcast the judge opening the trial without showing footage of Bashir, who has been jailed in Khartoum since he was toppled in April last year following mass protests against his 30-year rule.
Other defendants include former allies of Bashir such as military officers and Islamists, judicial sources said before the start of the trial.A Sudanese court handed Bashir a two-year sentence in December on corruption charges. He also faces trials and investigations over the killing of protesters.