EU plans CAP reforms for 'greener' farm subsidies

Many farmers rely on the subsidies to stay in business

The European Union has announced plans to reform its Common Agricultural Policy - its most expensive scheme, and one of the most controversial.

The CAP cost 58bn euros (£51bn; $80bn) last year - 47% of the whole EU budget.

The European Commission does not want to cut the budget, but change its priorities - including linking direct payments to environmental measures.

But farming, environmental and taxpayer groups all have their own concerns about the plans.

The proposals include:

keeping EU farm spending about level until 2020
capping the total subsidy a large farm can receive at 300,000 euros
levelling imbalances in payments: to subsidise acreage farmed rather than production totals; and bring payments in the eastern EU up to levels in the west
ending sugar production quotas
making 30% of the "direct payment" income support payments received by farmers dependent on environmental criteria.
Those environmental criteria include:

arable farmers growing at least three different crops, with none exceeding 70% of the total farm area
farmers leaving 7% of their land fallow
ensuring permanent pasture is maintained
The Commission said the aim of the reforms was to "strengthen the competitiveness, sustainability and permanence of agriculture throughout the EU in order to secure for European citizens a healthy and high-quality source of food, preserve the environment and develop rural areas".

It said the changes would gradually move rewards away from intensive farming to more sustainable practices.

Presenting the reforms, EU Agriculture Commissioner Dacian Ciolos said: "Europe needs its farmers. Farmers need Europe's support. The Common Agricultural Policy is what feeds us, it's the future of more than half of our territory."

'Sofa farmers'
Farming unions fear farmers will face even more bureaucracy in order to qualify for the payments on which they rely to continue in business.

Gail Soutar of Britain's National Farmers Union also said it was important to direct support to "active farmers... who are producing a crop or a litre of milk, we don't want support to go to people who are no longer producing... sofa farmers".

Lobby group Friends of the Earth said the proposals would continue subsidising factory farming, and not do enough to change farming practices.

A spokesman said the changes would have "devastating consequences for rainforests, the climate and some of the world's poorest people".

The British government, which has called for a reduction in the overall size of the CAP, said the reforms should have focused more closely on food security and biodiversity.

But British Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said she was worried that the Commission's proposals "will be far too backward-looking and this precious opportunity will be lost".

The Commission's plans will be subject to debate and revision, before they are agreed by EU governments and the European Parliament.

Iraq bombs: Police targeted in capital Baghdad

There has been a resurgence of suicide attacks in Baghdad

Five car bombs in Baghdad have killed at least 17 people, including police officers, officials say.

Two suicide bombers detonated explosives-laden vehicles minutes apart in north-western Hurriya district and central al-Wiya district, reports said.

They killed 11 and at least another six died in other car bombs, police said.

The resurgence of suicide attacks inside the capital is a worrying development even by Iraqi standards, says the BBC's Rami Ruhayem in Baghdad.

It comes as the last US troops prepare to withdraw by the end of the year.

Police targeted
In Wednesday morning's attacks, one of the suicide bombers struck at al-Wiya police station, located at one of Baghdad's main road junctions.

Another drove his car into the police checkpoint in the Hurriya neighbourhood, a busy residential area - and reportedly a stronghold of Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr - which is surrounded by blast walls.

At least 42 people were injured in those two attacks.

In other attacks in the Iraqi capital on Wednesday officials said:

A car bomb targeted a police patrol in the south of the city, killing three
Two police died in a roadside bomb attack in the west of the city
Another roadside bomb, also in a western district, targeted an Iraqi army patrol but killed one civilian
There were further violent incidents which caused injuries, AFP news agency reported - a silenced pistol attack on a checkpoint and a magnetic "sticky bomb" attached to a car
A further two car bombs were detected and dismantled, according to al-Iraqiya TV in Baghdad
The military spokesman for Baghdad, Qassim al-Moussawi, blamed al-Qaeda for the attacks, saying they were an attempt to show people that the militants were still active.

"Every three months or so, al-Qaeda mobilises all its resources to launch such attacks in one day to say that al-Qaeda is still able to attack and threaten security posts," he said, according to the Associated Press news agency.

Wednesday's attacks will intensify concerns about the security situation in the capital as the last US forces prepare to leave - though reports suggest Washington and Baghdad are discussing whether to leave some US forces behind as trainers.

At least nine people died in three blasts in Baghdad on Monday.

Correspondents say police are especially vulnerable to such attacks as they do not boast the heavy equipment or weapons of the Iraqi army. The army has also received the bulk of US training assistance.

Burma frees political prisoners

Zarganar said other political prisoners should also be set free

The Burmese government has freed more than 150 political prisoners as part of a general amnesty, activists say.

A popular comedian and dissident, Zarganar, was among the first to be freed. Some monks and journalists were also released.

Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi welcomed the amnesty.

Western nations maintain sanctions on Burma, and one of the key reasons is the country's continued detention of about 2,000 political prisoners.

They include journalists, pro-democracy activists, government critics, monks involved in anti-government protests and members of Burma's ethnic groups fighting for greater autonomy.

Zarganar was arrested in 2008 after publicly criticising the government response to Cyclone Nargis, which killed more than 140,000 people.

Speaking to the BBC shortly after his release, Zarganar was wary of his new-found freedom, describing it as conditional.

"If I do something wrong they will send me back. I'm not happy today because there are so many of my friends still in prison," he said.

Leaders of a failed uprising in 1988 are reportedly still in jail.

Bold step?
A Burmese prison official told the BBC that 300 dissidents had been freed, but this figure cannot yet be confirmed.

The human rights group Amnesty International said Burma's government - a nominally civilian administration dominated by leaders of the former military regime - must free more political detainees if it is seriously committed to reform.
"This release of political prisoners is welcome, but is not consistent with the authorities' recent promises of political reform in Burma," said Benjamin Zawacki, Amnesty International's Burma researcher, who is based in Bangkok.

"Unless the figure rises substantially, it will constitute a relaxation of reform efforts rather than a bold step forward."

The government said on Tuesday that more than 6,000 prisoners would be freed but it was unclear how many would be political detainees.

Ms Suu Kyi, herself freed from 15 years of house arrest last year, said: "We hope many more will be released. I'm really thankful for the release of political prisoners."

A number of monks are thought to be among those freed, but early reports that one of their leaders, Shin Gambira, had been released, could not be confirmed.

He led street protests in 2007 that were crushed by the previous military government.

Barometer of change
Burma announced an amnesty of 15,000 prisoners in May 2011 and freed more than 7,000 in 2009 - but those moves were criticised by rights groups for failing to include political prisoners.

Burma held its first elections in two decades almost a year ago - polls which saw military rule replaced with a military-backed civilian-led government.

Since then the government has freed Aung San Suu Kyi and held a dialogue with her.

But Nyan Win of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) told the BBC that a prisoner release was not all that was needed.

"The release of political prisoners is just one of the barometers of the government's seriousness about a change to democracy," he said.

"There should be other developments like media freedom, and the relaxation of censorship among other things."

The BBC's South East Asia correspondent Rachel Harvey says pro-democracy activists, human rights organisations and Western diplomats are likely to scrutinise carefully the list of those released on Wednesday and tailor their response accordingly.

Gilad Shalit: Israel and Palestinians welcome deal

People took to the streets in Jerusalem and Gaza City to celebrate the deal

Israelis and Palestinians have welcomed the announcement of a deal to free captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

Crowds of Israelis took to the streets of Jerusalem in celebration at the news, while similar scenes were played out among Palestinians in Gaza.

The deal was announced on Tuesday by the Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

Under the terms, more than 1,000 Palestinians and Sgt Shalit, held since 2006, will be freed, beginning in days.

Sgt Shalit, aged 19 at the time, was snatched in a cross-border raid by Hamas militants who tunnelled from Gaza into Israel.

On-off negotiations for his release have taken place for several years.

'Tough decision'

At an emergency meeting on Tuesday night, Israel's cabinet voted overwhelmingly to accept a final deal.

"This is a tough decision," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"I believe we reached the best deal we could at this time of turbulence in the Middle East. I do not know if in the forseeable future we will be able to reach a better deal, or any deal at all."
In Jerusalem, hundreds of young Israelis - many carrying pictures of Sgt Shalit - danced and sang in the streets following the surprise announcement.

"I think it's a deal that should happen and I'm sorry it didn't happen many many years ago," a Jerusalem resident, Nachum, told Reuters news agency.

"Every human being must be for the deal."

Yarra Vinkler, the girlfriend of Gilad Shalit's brother, told the BBC the family were relieved.

"We just congratulated the government, we thank them that it finally happened."

In Gaza, Hamas said tens of thousands of people took to the streets in celebration over the imminent Palestinian prisoner release.

Witnesses described jubilant crowds firing guns into the air and honking car horns.

Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal, speaking from exile in Syria, said the deal was "a great achievement, a qualitative success".

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri called the agreement "a cause for national celebration", Reuters reported.

The breakthrough was also welcomed by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who telephoned the father of Sgt Shalit, an Israeli-French national, to express his "joy that Gilad will soon be released", AFP news agency said.

Exclusions

The BBC's Jon Donnison in Jerusalem says both the Israeli government and Hamas will try to make political capital out of the deal.

In Israel most families have relatives in the military and the plight of Gilad Shalit, one of the best known faces in the country, has touched Israeli hearts, he says.
Hamas argue his case is no different though from the 6,000 Palestinians held in Israeli jails, our correspondent adds.

Several high-profile Palestinian prisoners have been excluded from the release deal, a senior Israeli official said.

They include key Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti; Ahmed Saadat, found guilty of ordering the killing of Israel's tourism minister in 2001; and Hamas' Abdullah Barghouti.

Full details of the deal have not yet been released, but Mr Meshaal said Israel had agreed to free 1,027 prisoners - including 27 women.
Publish Post
Reports said the first 450 prisoners would be freed in the coming days, with the rest being released over the next two months.

There are about 5,000 Palestinians held by Israel - some of whom have been convicted of serious crimes, but others are being held without charge.

West condemns Ukraine over Yulia Tymoshenko jailing

Ukrainians react with mixed feelings to Tymoshenko's jail sentence

Western leaders have condemned the jailing of former Ukraine Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.

The US and EU said the trial was politically motivated and Russia's foreign ministry said the ruling had a "clear anti-Russian subtext".

Tymoshenko was jailed for seven years for acting beyond her powers in sealing a gas deal with Russia in 2009.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who signed the deal, said he could not understand the court's verdict.

"It is dangerous and counterproductive to cast the entire package of agreements into doubt," said Mr Putin.

The judge ruled that Tymoshenko had "used her powers for criminal ends" by pushing Ukraine's state energy firm Naftogaz into a deal with Russia's Gazprom.

'Regrettable' case
The US called for the release of Tymoshenko and decried the "politically motivated prosecution".

"The charges against Mrs Tymoshenko and the conduct of her trial... have raised serious concerns about the government of Ukraine's commitment to democracy and rule of law," the White House said in a statement.
Several European countries were scathing about the sentencing, Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt labelling it a "political show-trial".

Rights watchdog the Council of Europe accused Ukraine of "criminalisation of political decision-taking", while Amnesty International demanded that Tymoshenko be set free.

EU foreign policy chief Baroness Ashton, who has been involved in negotiating a free-trade deal with Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych, said the trial "did not respect international standards".

"This unfortunately confirms that justice is being applied selectively in politically motivated prosecutions of the leaders of the opposition and members of the former government," she said.

Analysts say the jailing of Tymoshenko has threatened to torpedo the free-trade deal, which was due to begin in December.

Tymoshenko's supporters say Mr Yanukovych orchestrated the trial to get rid of his bitter political rival.

The president had been under pressure from Western governments and rights groups to downgrade the charges against Tymoshenko to administrative offences rather than criminal.

In comments after the sentencing, Mr Yanukovych said he understood the reaction to the "regrettable" case, adding that Tuesday's verdict was not final.

"There is the court of appeal ahead and what decision it will take and under which legislation has great importance," he said.

Hundreds of Tymoshenko supporters gathered outside the court to wait for Judge Rodion Kireyev's verdict, some getting into scuffles with security forces.

He jailed her for seven years and banned her from political office for three years.

He also ordered her to pay back 1.5bn hrivnas ($186m; £119m) he said had been lost by Naftogaz as a result of the deal she signed.

Allies no more
Russia pipes gas to Western Europe across Ukrainian territory and relations between the two ex-Soviet states have long been dogged by disputes over transit fees and unpaid bills.
As the verdict was read out over several hours, Tymoshenko stared at her iPad, apparently not listening to the judge.

She has been in custody for contempt of court since 5 August.

Tymoshenko was the heroine of the Western-leaning Orange Revolution - the sudden street protests that erupted after a fraudulent presidential election in 2004.

She was made prime minister shortly afterwards.

But the next few years saw the reform movement stagnate.

Tymoshenko fell out with her Orange allies, and their constant bickering paralysed the country just as it was facing a deep economic crisis.

In 2010, Tymoshenko was forced into opposition as Mr Yanukovych rose to power.

Some of her former Orange allies - including former President Viktor Yushchenko - testified against her in the court case.

Republicans block Obama jobs bill

President Obama made a toast "to more jobs" with unemployed tradesmen in Florida

Republicans in the US Senate have blocked President Barack Obama's jobs bill in a procedural vote.

Forty-six Republican senators joined with two Democrats to filibuster the $447bn (£287bn) package.

Reacting to the vote, Mr Obama said: "Tonight's vote is by no means the end of this fight."

Republicans oppose the measure citing its spending to stimulate the economy and its tax rise on millionaires. The US unemployment rate is jammed at 9.1%.

The package failed by a vote of 50 to 49, short of the 60 votes it needed to advance in the 100-member Senate.

The president has spent several weeks promoting the jobs bill in a campaign-style tour across the country.
But despite his efforts, he did not pick up a single Republican vote in the Democratic-controlled Senate on Tuesday.

Democrats Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Jon Tester of Montana, facing re-election next year in conservative states, also voted against the measure.

The American Jobs Act includes $175bn in infrastructure spending and aid for local governments to avoid layoffs, as well as Social Security payroll tax cuts for workers and businesses.

Adopting a defiant tone after the vote, Mr Obama said he would work with Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to see that individual proposals in the bill gained a vote as soon as possible.

The president told a union audience earlier in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. "I think they'll have a hard time explaining why they voted no on this bill - other than the fact that I proposed it."

Mr Obama has cited independent economists as estimating the American Jobs Act could create up to 1.9m jobs.
Analysts say that among the elements of the bill which might be salvaged are a payroll tax cut which Mr Obama wants to extend.

Another part of the package that could that attract bipartisan support could be extending unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless.

But the package's proposals for increased highway spending and aid for cash-strapped states are deemed unlikely to pick up Republican support.

After Tuesday's appearance in Pennsylvania, Mr Obama travelled to Florida for fundraising, and a beer with four unemployed construction workers to discuss jobs.

The president told the group - three pipe-fitters and a plumber - at an Irish pub in downtown Orlando that he was trying to figure out how to help the building industry.

The tradesmen drank Budweiser and Mr Obama had a Guinness as they all toasted: "To more jobs!"

Democrats say that Republicans are more interested in defeating Mr Obama than helping the country recover from the deepest recession since the 1930s.

But Republicans, who back a job-creation agenda focusing on loosening business regulations, say Mr Obama's jobs bill is a re-run of his 2009 stimulus.

Almost 45% of the 14 million jobless Americans have been out of work for six months or more.

Long queues at jobs fairs, like this one in Washington state, have become a common sight

Australia parliament passes divisive carbon tax

The carbon tax vote is an important victory for Prime Minister Julia Gillard

Australia's lower house of parliament has narrowly passed a bill for a controversial carbon tax.

The legislation would force about 500 of the biggest polluters to pay for each tonne of carbon dioxide they emit.

The tax is central to the government's strategy to combat climate change, but the opposition says it will cause job losses and raise the cost of living.

Australia is the world's largest coal exporter and is one of the biggest per capita greenhouse gas emitters.

"Today is a significant day for Australians and the Australians of the future who want to see a better environment," Prime Minister Julia Gillard said before the vote.

After her Clean Energy Bill 2011 was passed with 74 votes for and 72 against, she hugged colleagues and waved to supporters in the public galleries.

Protests
The victory is an important one for the prime minister, whose popularity with voters in opinion polls has been declining against the opposition.

The bill is unpopular with many Australians. Thousands of people have protested against it, accusing Ms Gillard of lying before last year's election.

Ms Gillard made a pledge during last year's federal election not to introduce a carbon tax.
The proposed tax was drawn up after Ms Gillard failed to win an overall majority in parliament at the polls and had to rely on the support of the Australian Greens.

The carbon tax and a companion bill for A$300m ($298m; £191m) in assistance for the Australian steel industry are expected to pass in the senate with the assistance of the Greens next month.

Australia's 500 heaviest polluters will pay A$23 for each tonne of carbon emissions, and households will be compensated through tax cuts or welfare increases for any increased costs.

It will be introduced on 1 July next year, and will then evolve into an emissions trading scheme three years later.

The conservative opposition leader, Tony Abbott, has promised to ditch the tax if he wins office.

Gilad Shalit: Israel and Hamas agree prisoner swap deal

Gilad Shalit has been held by Palestinian militants for the past five years

Israel and Hamas have agreed a deal for the release of Sgt Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier held hostage by Palestinian militants for five years.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the deal had been reached after arduous talks, and that Sgt Shalit would be back with his family "within days".

Israel will release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in exchange.

Sgt Shalit was captured in a cross-border raid in 2006, and attempts to negotiate his release have failed.

Mr Netanyahu said in a national TV address: "We have concluded arduous negotiations with Hamas to release Gilad Shalit. He will be coming home in the next few days."

Sgt Shalit's continued detention is a hugely emotive issue in Israel, where his family have maintained a high profile campaign for his release.

However, there are many Israelis who have had family members killed by Palestinian militants and object in principle to any mass release of prisoners.

Several high-profile Palestinian prisoners have been excluded from the release deal, a senior Israeli offical said.

The deal was confirmed in the Israeli cabinet by a 26-3 vote, following a heated three-hour debate.

"This is a difficult decision, but leadership is tested at moments like this, on the ability to make difficult decisions," said Mr Netanyahu said in a statement.

'Window of opportunity'
The militant group Hamas, which runs Gaza, said in a statement that there were tens of thousands of people on the streets celebrating the deal.
Witnesses described celebratory crowds firing guns into the air and honking car horns.

The group's leader Khaled Meshaal, who is in exile in Syria, appeared on TV to hail the swap deal as a victory for the Palestinian people.

He said the Israelis had agreed to free 1,027 prisoners - including 27 women.

However, several high-profile Palestinian prisoners will not be released, Yoram Cohen, head of Israel's Shin Bet internal intelligence service, said.

Those not due for release include key Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, Ahmed Saadat, found guilty of ordering the killing of Israel's tourism minister in 2001, and Hamas' Abdullah Barghouti.

Reports said the first 450 prisoners would be freed in the coming days, with the rest being released over the next two months.

"It is a great achievement, a qualitative success," said Mr Meshaal.

"Because of this accord, there will no longer be any women in the jails of the enemy."

He promised to carry on working to free every Palestinian prisoner held in Israeli jails.

There are about 5,000 Palestinians held by Israel - some of whom have been convicted of serious crimes, but others are being held without charge.

The BBC's Jon Donnison in Jerusalem says Sgt Shalit's family and the families of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners will not believe a deal has been done until their relatives are home.

Israel's Channel 2 TV reported that both sides had shown greater flexibility in recent talks.

Indirect talks over the 25-year-old's release have been going on for years, with Egypt and Germany mediating.

In October 2009, Hamas released a video of the soldier calling on Mr Netanyahu to do everything to free him.

New Zealand oil spill ship captain charged

It is not clear how the Rena ran into the well-charted reef in calm weather

The captain of a cargo ship that has grounded off New Zealand and is leaking oil into the sea has been arrested and charged, officials say.

The captain was charged with "operating a vessel in a manner causing unnecessary danger or risk".

The 775ft (236m) Rena ran aground on a charted reef off the North Island port of Tauranga a week ago.

Officials say the fuel oil leaking from the ship has caused the country's worst environmental disaster in decades.

Maritime New Zealand (MNZ), which is managing the emergency response, said about 70 containers had fallen off the Rena after more bad weather overnight shifted the vessel into a heavy list.

The ship is carrying 11 containers of hazardous materials, MNZ said, including ferrosilicon which is flammable upon contact with water.

MNZ said the hazardous materials containers were not among those that had fallen overboard.

Growing anger
On Tuesday, MNZ officials said the spill was much worse than originally feared, with as much as 350 tonnes of oil estimated to have leaked from the ship.
Environment Minister Nick Smith called it "New Zealand's worst environmental disaster in many decades".
MNZ said the Rena's captain had been charged under section 65 of the Maritime Transport Act. He faces a fine of $7,800 (£5,000) or a maximum prison sentence of 12 months if convicted.

More charges were likely, MNZ said.

He appeared at a court in Tauranga on Wednesday morning and was granted bail for one week, when he is next due in court.

Judge Robert Wolff granted his lawyer's request that the captain's name be suppressed because people "might want to take matters into their own hands".

The captain's passport has been confiscated and he is to remain at a nominated address approved by the prosecutors and make daily reports to a local police station subject to the needs of the salvage operation.

It is not clear how the vessel ran aground on a well-marked reef in calm weather.

With shipping containers falling off the Rena, New Zealand has issued a navigational warning and re-routed major shipping away from the grounded vessel.
Some of the containers have been reported to have washed ashore on Motiti Island, between Astrolabe Reef and Tauranga. More of the Rena's 1,368 containers are expected to fall overboard in the heavy swells battering the ship.

Meanwhile, anger is growing among residents of Tauranga and nearby communities over the speed of the official response to the grounding.

The oil spill is happening in an area teeming with wildlife, including penguins, seals, dolphins, whales and rare sea birds.

Bad weather, including north-easterly winds of 30 knots and heavy seas, have hampered efforts to pump oil off the Rena and clumps of oil are washing up on the area's long, sandy beaches.

Once the oil is off the vessel and the containers have been removed, salvage crews can work on lifting the Rena off Astrolabe Reef.

Oil from the Rena has been washing up on some of New Zealand's most popular beaches

Iran agents 'planned US terror attacks'

US Attorney General Eric Holder says the alleged conspiracy was "conceived, sponsored and directed from Iran"

The US says it has broken up a plot by agents linked to Iran to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington using explosives.

Two men originally from Iran - one a naturalised US citizen - have been charged with counts of conspiracy, Attorney General Eric Holder said.

The plot was "conceived" in Iran by the Quds force, part of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, he added.

The state department has listed Iran as a "state sponsor" of terror since 1984.

Mr Holder said the alleged plot was a "flagrant violation of US and international law" that had been "conceived, sponsored and directed by Iran".

'Comedy show'
Iran's official Islamic Republic News Agency called the charges a "propaganda campaign" by the US government against Tehran.
The allegations were "a comedy show fabricated by America", Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told the semi-official Iranian news agency, Fars.

The Saudi embassy in Washington DC said the alleged plot was "a despicable violation of international norms, standards and conventions and is not in accord with the principles of humanity".

The two accused were named as Manssor Arbabsiar, a 56-year-old naturalised US citizen with dual Iranian and US passports, and Gholam Shakuri, based in Iran and said to be a member of Iran's Quds Force.

Mr Arbabsiar, who was arrested at New York's John F Kennedy airport on 29 September, has confessed to his involvement in the alleged plot, Mr Holder said.

Mr Shakuri was said to be in Iran.

US officials said that on 24 May 2011, Mr Arbabsiar made contact with an informant for the US Drug Enforcement Agency, who was posing as a Mexican drug cartel member.

Over a series of meetings, it is said that details emerged of a conspiracy involving members of the Iranian government paying $1.5m (£960,000) for the assassination of Saudi ambassador Adel al-Jubeir on US soil.

Justice department officials said the initial envisaged target was the Saudi embassy.
But in conversations secretly recorded for the US authorities, Mr Arbabsiar also allegedly considered having the ambassador killed at a purported favourite restaurant, despite the possibility of mass casualties.

The plot would have been carried out with explosives, Mr Holder said. But he added that no explosives were ever put in place and the public was not in danger.

Mr Holder said Mr Arbabsiar, with approval from Mr Shakuri, wired $100,000 to a US bank account for the informant as a downpayment.

Mr Arbabsiar and Mr Shakuri have been charged with conspiracy to murder a foreign official, weapons conspiracy, and conspiracy to commit international terrorism charges.

President Barack Obama is said to have been informed of the alleged plot in June 2011 and was kept up to date with developments.

'Hollywood script'
White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said: "The disruption of this plot is a significant achievement by our intelligence and law enforcement agencies, and the president is enormously grateful for their exceptional work."

The treasury department later announced sanctions against five people - including Mr Arbabsiar and Mr Shakuri - whom it linked to the alleged plot.

FBI Director Robert Mueller told reporters: "Though it reads like the pages of a Hollywood script, the impact would have been very real and many lives would have been lost."

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton later told a news conference the US would consult with its international partners to send a "very strong message" over the alleged plot.
Mr Arbabsiar appeared briefly at a New York City court on Tuesday. He did not enter a plea and was held without bail.

He could face a life prison sentence if convicted on all charges, the Department of Justice said.

Criminal charges were brought in the southern district of New York because the alleged $100,000 downpayment was wired through a bank in the area, officials said.