WASHINGTON - The special counsel investigating the leak of a covert CIA operative's identity will hold a news conference at 2 p.m. EDT on Friday to discuss the status of the probe, his office said in a statement.

The statement said information on the case will be available at noon.

The announcement came after the federal grand jury weighing criminal charges over the leak began meeting with special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald, with the expectation of criminal charges in the long-running investigation.

Legal sources said Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, Lewis Libby, appeared likely to be charged, and perhaps other officials also.

But legal sources said Fitzgerald had informed President George W. Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove, that he will not be indicted on Friday, although he will remain under investigation and in legal jeopardy. Rove's attorney, Robert Luskin, had no immediate comment.

Charges in the case would be the first in a two-year probe that began with an investigation of who disclosed CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity.

Fitzgerald, accompanied by other lawyers, had no comment as he arrived at the courthouse and entered the grand jury chambers.

Indictments could trigger an immediate shake-up at the White House, already on the defensive over the response to Hurricane Katrina, opposition to the Iraq war and the withdrawal of Bush's nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, Harriet Miers.

Despite initial denials, both Rove and Libby spoke to reporters in June and July 2003 about Plame.

It was unclear how Fitzgerald would keep the Rove investigation going since the current grand jury is scheduled to expire at the end of the day on Friday.

Plame's identity was leaked to the media after her diplomat husband, Joseph Wilson, accused the Bush administration of twisting prewar intelligence to support military action against Iraq. Wilson said it was done deliberately to erode his credibility.

WHITE HOUSE ANXIOUS

Libby was a key, behind-the-scenes figure in helping build the administration's case for the invasion of Iraq.

In the run-up to Friday's grand jury session, Fitzgerald conferred in secret with his legal team and with attorneys representing some of the potential defendants, including Luskin.

One lawyer involved in the case said the attorneys made final appeals to Fitzgerald to try to avoid indictment, raising the prospect of last-minute plea agreements.

When asked on Thursday whether Rove was trying to negotiate Fitzgerald down to a lesser charge, Luskin responded: "False."

White House officials have been anxiously awaiting Fitzgerald's decision since any indicted officials were expected to immediately resign. Bush was then likely to make a public statement.

In a last-minute flurry of interviews, FBI agents canvassed Plame's neighborhood to see if anyone knew about her covert work for the spy agency before her cover was blown in a July 14, 2003, newspaper column by Robert Novak.

Legal sources said Rove could instead face perjury charges for initially failing to tell the grand jury he talked to Time magazine reporter Matt Cooper about Plame.

Lawyers said Libby was open to false statement and obstruction charges because of contradictions between his testimony and that of New York Times reporter Judith Miller and other journalists.

© Reuters 2005

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