New York: Libyan leader Muammer Qaddafi's intelligence chiefs ordered a covert operation last year to assassinate the ruler of Saudi Arabia and destabilise the oil-rich kingdom, according to statements by two alleged participants in the conspiracy.

The participants Abdurahman Alamoudi, an American Muslim leader now in jail in the United States and Colonel Mohamed Ismael, a Libyan intelligence officer in Saudi custody, have given separate statements to American and Saudi officials outlining the plot, the 'New York Times' said.

Alamoudi has told Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) officials and federal prosecutors that Colonel Qaddafi, who was renouncing terrorism and negotiating the lifting of sanctions last year, approved the assassination plan.

However, Qaddafi's son, in an interview in London, called the accusation "nonsense".

The 'Times' said American officials confirm that Alamoudi and Ismael have offered detailed accounts of a Libyan plot to assassinate Crown Prince Abdullah and that they appear to be credible enough to have launched an American investigation.

But the officials said they are still examining the scope of the plot, how far it advanced and whether Colonel Qaddafi was involved.

They said the accusations were one reason the United States had not removed Libya from the State Department's list of nations that support terrorism.

Saudi Arabia, the US and Britain are investigating the assassination plot, which involved firing rockets at the Crown Prince, the report said quoting people with the knowledge of the case.