Australian coalition backbenchers forced the federal government to soften its anti-terrorism bill to include more safeguards.
Under the changes, authorities will be required to review detention orders against suspects three times.
They will have be reviewed after 24 hours and 48 hours.
If authorities want to extend the order a full review by the Federal Court is needed.
After 11th hour talks with coalition MP’s, Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock, also agreed to a higher test for prosecuting terror suspects.
Mr Ruddock further promised to re-examine the sedition provisions in the new year.
The safeguards ensured the bill’s introduction into the Australian Parliament in Canberra on Thursday.
The concerns came from within the coalition and included Liberal MP’s, Petro Georgiou and Malcolm Turnbull.
Introducing the bill, Mr Ruddock said the legislation would “ensure that we have the toughest laws possible to prosecute those responsible should a terrorist attack occur.”
New and emerging threats
The legislation was rushed into Parliament just hours after the federal government announced a new and specific intelligence on a terror threat.
The government had stressed that it would be in a position to prevent future threats and to stop terrorists carrying out any planned attacks.
Prime Minister, John Howard, said it was the “modern equivalent of that period we lived through with the threat of nuclear annihilation.”
Mr Ruddock said police would be able to act immediately against suspected terrorists following the royal assent of the legislation.
But he declined to say if any arrests were planned and did not identify any potential targets.
“The question of whether or not arrests occur depends upon the availability of the evidence,” Mr Ruddock told Channel Nine.
“Any decision about operation issues are in the hands of police, not the government,” he said.
Mr Howard declined to give any details but they are beginning to emerge in the media.
Potential targets
The Daily Telegraph newspaper says the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Kurnell oil refinery are the top targets of a suspected terror group being tracked by spy agencies and the police.
The Islamist group has been under watch by ASIO and state and federal police for more than a year and is part of a Sydney-Melbourne alliance, the Telegraph claimed.
Members of the groups were arrested in raids in June over a suspected plot to attack Melbourne landmarks, including the railway station and Australian Stock Exchange.
At the time there was not enough evidence to arrest or charge them.
Police are reportedly poised for a series of fresh raids on alleged terrorist cells under Operation Pandanus.
The Australian newspaper reports that police are expected to pounce within days.
The group includes two men in Sydney, one of whom was allegedly identified by a US informant who said they met at a training camp run by the outlawed Pakistani-based militant group, Lashkar-e-Toiba.
Blair defiant after backdown
In Britain, Prime Minister Tony Blair battled to reassert his authority after a major setback over proposed laws to fight terrorism.
Under the controversial legislation, prompted by the London bombings in July, the British government wanted to enable police to hold terrorism suspects for up to 90 days without charge.
But the government was forced to back down after it seemed inevitable that MP’s would reject the plan.
Mr Blair’s spokesman said he still strongly supports the measures in spite of the opposition by MP’s.
“Times are tough, but they are tough because the government is trying to do the right thing,” Mr Blair told his ministers, according to his spokesman.