TERROR suspect Abu Qatada was back behind bars as the 10-year battle to put him on a plane to Jordan entered its final stages.

Home Secretary Theresa May has secured assurances from Jordan that it would "bend over backwards" to ensure Qatada received a fair trial over terror charges, a senior immigration judge said.

Just hours earlier, the radical cleric, who has been described by a judge as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe, was arrested at his London home by UK Border Agency officers.

It marked the start of the Government's latest bid to deport Qatada, who was returned to jail after a rapidly convened court hearing found deportation was imminent and the chance of him trying to abscond had increased.

The judge, Mr Justice Mitting, added: "If the parties act with great rapidity it is possible that this very long-running saga can be brought to a rapid conclusion within a matter of at most a very few weeks."

But Qatada's legal team are likely to challenge all moves to deport him and Mrs May warned MPs that it may still be "many months" before Qatada can be lawfully kicked out.

Any appeal would have to be based on "narrow grounds" though, she said, and the Government was confident of its "eventual success".

Qatada was released from Long Lartin high-security jail in Evesham, Worcestershire, in February under some of the toughest bail conditions seen since the September 11 attacks.

But with the assurances now given by Jordan, the 51-year-old could be put on a plane lawfully, MPs were told.

If he challenges the order and it is promptly dismissed, a judicial review of the decision could be held as early as April 25, the Special Immigration Appeals Commission hearing heard.

Speaking in the Commons, Mrs May said: "I believe the assurances and the information we have gathered will mean that we can soon put Qatada on a plane and get him out of our country for good."

She was cheered as she told MPs Qatada had been arrested.