US Attorney General Mr John Ashcroft has decided to allow relatives of those killed in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing to watch bomber Timothy McVeigh's execution by lethal injection on May 16 on closed-circuit TV, US media reported.
Mr Ashcroft, who on Tuesday met in Oklahoma City with families of the 168 victims of the blast, will announce his decision at a press conference this morning.
The Washington Postsaid Mr Ashcroft wants to limit the broadcast to the lethal injection itself, avoiding any final statement McVeigh may want to make.
Bush administration officials quoted by the newspaper said they wanted to prevent giving McVeigh a chance to confront or taunt the victims' relatives.
Only eight slots are available for so-called victim witnesses at the execution chamber in Terre Haute's federal penitentiary, where McVeigh will be put to death, but some 250 bereaved and survivors have said they wish to see McVeigh's last moments.
In the wake of a media furor over a book published April 3, in which McVeigh is quoted as describing the 19 children who died in the bombing as "collateral damage," Mr Ashcroft indicated on Tuesday he may deny further media interviews.
"Obviously, I am not interested in providing any additional tools to an individual who wants to disrespect this culture," he said during his address on the grounds of a city memorial to the 168 people who died in the bombing.
AFP