88 Human Rights in Counter-Terrorism Investigations 3.4.3 The Right to Challenge the Lawfulness of One’s Arrest Any terrorism suspect should be entitled to challenge the lawfulness of his or her arrest and detention before a court, in compliance with international fair trial standards. This right applies from the outset of the arrest and throughout his or her detention. In the anti-terrorism context, however, the police may be obliged to act with utmost urgency in following up on all information, including from secret sources. Arrests and detention of terrorism suspects, therefore, may happen on the basis of information that is reliable, but that may not be revealed to the suspect or produced in court without putting in jeopardy the source of information. However, protecting the source of information used to justify an arrest and detention should not affect the right of the detainee to challenge the lawfulness of his or her arrest and detention. 3.4.4 The Right of Access to Legal Counsel of One’s Choice Individuals accused of terrorism-related offences have the right to defend themselves through legal assistance of their own choosing. This choice may, however, be restricted for genuine reasons of national security. In practice, the right of access to legal counsel includes being allowed to: • consult with a lawyer in the police station from the very first moment when a person is obliged to remain with the police;100 and • have a lawyer present during any interviews, from the time of the arrest until the first declaration before the competent authority.101 The right of access to legal counsel is particularly important in the period immediately following the deprivation of liberty, when the risk of intimidation and ill-treatment is greatest. Access to a lawyer at this time may have not only a dissuasive effect on those intending to ill-treat detainees, but also makes the lawyer well placed to take appropriate action if ill-treatment 100 This is the shared view of mechanisms such as CPT and the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism. 101 IACHR, Resolution 1/08, op. cit., note 79, Principle V – Due process of law.