Trump announces three new appointments

US President-elect Donald Trump has appointed a new attorney general, national security adviser and CIA director of his future cabinet.

Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions, 69, has been offered the job of attorney general according to transition officials that wish to remain anonymous.

Sessions,a former prosecutor elected to the Senate in 1996, was nominated by former president Ronald Reagan in 1986 for a federal judgeship but was rejected because of allegations that he had made racist remarks, which he strongly denied.

"He is a world-class legal mind and considered a truly great attorney general and US attorney in the state of Alabama. Jeff is greatly admired by legal scholars and virtually everyone who knows him," said Trump.

"I enthusiastically embrace president-elect Trump’s vision for ‘one America,’ and his commitment to equal justice under law. I look forward to fulfilling my duties with an unwavering dedication to fairness and impartiality,” said Sessions in a statement.

Sessions opposes citizenship for undocumented immigrants and enthusiastically backed Trump's pledge to build a wall on the border with Mexico.

Former Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, 57, has accepted the position of national security adviser, according to the same sources.

Flynn has been a vocal critic of the Obama administration since he was dismissed from his position as director of the Defence Intelligence Agency in 2014. He agrees with Trump on renegotiating the Iran nuclear deal, strengthening ties with Russia and intensifying the fight against Islamic extremists.

One of Flynn's tweets said that fear of muslims is "rational".

"General Flynn is one of the country’s foremost experts on military and intelligence matters and he will be an invaluable asset to me and my administration," said Trump.

Flynn said he was “deeply humbled and honored to accept the position as national security advisor to serve both our country and our nation’s next president.”

Both men have been close allies during Trump's campaign and share many of his views.

Conservative Republican Mike Pompeo has also been offered the role of CIA director, according to the sources.

"He will be a brilliant and unrelenting leader for our intelligence community to ensure the safety of Americans and our allies," said Trump.

“I am honored to have been given this opportunity to serve and to work alongside president-elect Donald J. Trump to keep America safe,” Pompeo said in a statement. “I also look forward to working with America’s intelligence warriors, who do so much to protect Americans each and every day.”

Pompeo has also criticised Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, tweeting on Thursday: "I look forward to rolling back this disastrous deal with the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism."