The British Prime Minister, Mr Blair, is set for another round of international diplomacy immediately after his statement to MPs at the start of today's emergency sitting of Parliament.
No 10 Downing Street was refusing to confirm the Prime Minister's reported plans to visit Pakistan and Russia, as well as British forces in Oman.
However, reports from Pakistan and Russia indicated that Mr Blair was expected to take part in another push to bolster the international coalition for the US-led strike against international terrorism.
Mr Blair's expected departure from the UK - coupled with US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's trip to the Middle East - encouraged belief in some quarters that the expected assault against Osama bin Laden and his network in Afghanistan might not get under way until the weekend at the earliest.
At the same time, HMS Illustrious, the British navy's flagship vessel, set sail from the Omani port of Salahah, amid heightening tension and growing expectation in the region that military action was imminent.
On the domestic political front, meanwhile, the Home Secretary, Mr David Blunkett, performed a delicate balancing act at the Labour conference - countering mounting concerns about the civil liberties implications of planned emergency legislation with the promise of a comprehensive review of the country's asylum procedures, and a commitment to a US-style green card system to regularise immigration.
Mr Blunkett cast his commitment to change the law on incitement to include religious as well as racial hatred as part of the crackdown on international terror and a necessary move to protect Britain's Muslims from any backlash following the terrorist attacks on America.
And he said the promised new approach to asylum and immigration was necessary to "lift the pall of suspicion from those who come into our country and are in our country legitimately and openly". However, Mr John Wadham, director of the human rights group Liberty, suggested existing laws could be better used to protect people from religious hatred. "Given the discrimination that exists in the police and criminal justice system, and in the current climate, it is more likely that Muslims will be prosecuted than those who vilify them. What we need is stronger anti-discrimination laws to protect people from being sacked or harassed on the grounds of religion, not more criminal offences."
Britain's looming civil liberties debate seemed certain to intensify as Mr Blunkett confirmed that he has not decided against the introduction of compulsory identity cards.
The Home Secretary repeated his previous line that such a proposal should be seen in the context of an ongoing debate about citizenship and entitlement and not as part of the immediate response to the US atrocities.
As part of that response, Mr Blunkett confirmed that a package of emergency measures would be put before MPs in the coming weeks. This will include an amendment to the Immigration and Asylum Act to ensure that those suspected or convicted of terrorist involvement cannot be considered for asylum. Other measures will give law enforcement agencies full access to passenger and freight information, which air and sea carriers will be required to retain, and make it an offence for financial institutions to fail to report transactions which they know or suspect to be linked to terrorist activities.
Mr Blunkett insisted removing the constant use of judicial review - which had become "a lawyer's charter" - would not remove access to due process of law.