US Attorney General Eric Holder to resign

White House officials and the US Justice Department told reporters on Thursday that US Attorney General Eric Holder planned to step down. The formal announcement was expected later in the day.

It was not immediately clear what his next professional step would be.

The 63-year-old New York native has served six years in the United States' top legal position. He was nominated to the cabinet position during President Barack Obama's first term, and shared with the president the historic significance of being the country's first African American to hold the position.

The attorney general brought in many years' experience as a lawyer who rose quickly to become a judge at a young age. He later served as a junior public corruption prosecutor at the Justice Department under former President Bill Clinton.

He has been one of the main liberal voices in the Obama administration, championing causes such as same-sex marriage and other civil rights issues. Holder's tenure has also been marked by controversy. Unlike many officials in Washington, Holder was known for speaking his mind, drawing criticism in 2009 for calling the United States a "nation of cowards" regarding the public discussion on civil rights.

The following year, Holder drew the ire of many Americans with a plan to try the "architect" of the 9-11 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, in a court in Manhattan.

Most recently he was seen as a reconciler when he travelled to Ferguson, Missouri, in the wake of the fatal shooting of an unarmed African American teenager by a white police officer, which prompted days of public protest. Holder ordered a federal autopsy of the deceased - Michael Brown - and launched an investigation of the local police.

kms/jr (AP, Reuters, dpa)