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Australian police say they have foiled a large-scale terrorist attack, with at least 16 arrests in Melbourne and Sydney.
Police say a suspect in the case was shot and wounded by police near Sydney, and that a bomb squad robot was being used to examine a backpack he was wearing.
A lawyer for a Muslim cleric in Melbourne named Abu Bakr said his client was among those arrested early Tuesday. In August, Abu Bakr praised Osama Bin Laden during an interview aired by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Police said the arrests disrupted a "large scale" terrorist attack in Australia. They said bomb-making materials were found during the raids.
The arrests come just days after the federal government rushed an amendment through parliament that would give police the power to arrest people involved in the early stages of planning attacks.
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