Iran wants senior atom inspector out

The Iranian diplomat quoted by IRNA said the inspector gave confidential information to "inappropriate countries and their media."

"Iran's cooperation with the IAEA will continue in the framework of the NPT ..., which means inspections and supervisions will continue," IRNA quoted the diplomat as saying.

Asked about the report, Alisasghar Soltanieh, Iran's IAEA ambassador, told Reuters: "It means we expect Charlier will not have anything to do with Iran any more. There are plenty of impartial experts in the IAEA secretariat to do the job."

IRNA's diplomat also said there would be no place for inspectors from countries behind measures against "Iran's peaceful nuclear activities." He appeared to be referring to Britain, France and Germany, which authored the U.N. sanctions.

At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, IAEA director Mohamed ElBaradei appealed to Iran and the West to declare a "timeout."

He told invited journalists that face-saving gestures of goodwill, not preconditions for talks set by the council, were needed to stave off conflict that could inflame the Middle East.

"(A) military solution ... is absolutely bonkers. It would only strengthen the hand of (Iranian) hardliners. They would simply go underground. If you have the knowledge (to enrich), you cannot bomb the knowledge."

Fears the United States is preparing to attack Iran despite denials have been raised by the arrival of an additional U.S. aircraft carrier in the Gulf and a U.S. warning it would not let Iran provide weapons and support to insurgents in Iraq.

(Additional reporting by Thomas Atkins in Davos and Alireza Ronaghi in Tehran)