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Spooked

by
July-August 2009, no. 313

Terrorism and Intelligence in Australia: A history of ASIO and national surveillance by Frank Cain

Australian Scholarly Publishing, $39.95 pb, 362 pp

Spooked

by
July-August 2009, no. 313

Timely and accurate intelligence remains crucial to providing early warning of preparations for a terrorist attack. In this sense, high-grade intelligence represents the ‘front end’ of counter-terrorist strategy. This has certainly been reflected in the streamlining of Australia’s intelligence agencies since 9/11 and in the unprecedented resources that have been diverted to those agencies, particularly ASIO. The latter remains the agency responsible for preparing and distributing threat assessments and specific warnings on terrorist threats to Australia. This decade it has been granted substantially increased legislative powers to monitor, detain and question terrorist suspects. Due to the changes to Australia’s anti-terror laws since 9/11, ASIO’s internal security profile has become more prominent along with its increasingly close cooperation with state and federal police agencies.

Andrew O'Neil reviews 'Terrorism and Intelligence in Australia: A history of ASIO and national surveillance' by Frank Cain

Terrorism and Intelligence in Australia: A history of ASIO and national surveillance

by Frank Cain

Australian Scholarly Publishing, $39.95 pb, 362 pp

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