RT @BBCWorld: Chief of Gaddafi's security brigades has crossed into Niger, say Niger officials - from Reuters http://j.mp/ppPIZC #Libya
Libya conflict: Where could Muammar Gaddafi be hiding?
Transitional authorities want to find Muammar Gaddafi as soon as possibleFugitive Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has disappeared from view, and finding him has become an urgent priority for Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC). They are said to be receiving help from their Western allies. Both the transitional authorities and the US have said they have no reason to believe he has left Libya, but his exact whereabouts remain a mystery.
Col Gaddafi may have taken refuge in a compound or a farm set up as a bolt hole for just the kind of scenario in which he now finds himself. Or he could have sought out the more anonymous surroundings of an urban area where he can still count on loyal supporters.
Tripoli
Such anonymity might still be found in the capital, if Col Gaddafi has chosen the tactic of hiding in plain sight.
The symbolic centre of the Gaddafi regime, the Bab al-Aziziya compound, was overrun on 22 August. But even after this, there remained pockets of resistance to the rebel advance.
In an audio message on 31 August, Col Gaddafi's most prominent son, Saif al-Islam, said he was speaking from the outskirts of the capital, and that he had been out for a walk earlier in the day. He said his father was well, but gave no indication of his whereabouts.
However, now that the NTC essentially controls the capital, hiding there would be a risky strategy and it might be difficult for him to escape.
Sirte
Sirte is Col Gaddafi's birthplace. Still controlled by Gaddafi loyalists, it has regularly been cited as somewhere Col Gaddafi might take refuge - though it seems transitional authorities are now moving away from this theory.
Sirte is home to members of Col Gaddafi's own Qadhadfa tribe and another local tribe, the Magariha; in an audio message on 1 September, Col Gaddafi said the tribes were armed and "there is no way they will submit".
Col Gaddafi developed Sirte from an obscure outpost into a second capital, maintaining a substantial compound there. The city hosts a major army garrison and has an air base nearby. Last week, Nato targeted a "large bunker" in Sirte.
But the city may also be considered too obvious a hiding place, because of its symbolic importance. And now that it is surrounded, the only realistic route of escape would be the sea, where Nato warships are deployed.
Bani Walid
Bani Walid is a city of some 50,000 inhabitants, 150km (95 miles) south-east of Tripoli. Col Gaddafi is reputed to have a lots of support there, though the city is mixed in its make-up. It is a stronghold for the Warfalla tribe. In his defiant audio message on 1 September, the fugitive leader referred to it as "an armed fortress".
The NTC may have made inroads in parts of Bani Walid - one rebel commander claimed to Agence France-Presse that 80% of people there had turned against Col Gaddafi - but the sprawling south could provide cover, as well as an escape route across the desert.
Abdel Majid Mlegta, co-ordinator of the Tripoli military operations room, was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying he had been told by a trusted source that Col Gaddafi had fled with his son Saif al-Islam and intelligence chief Abdullah Sanussi to Bani Walid last week. Col Gaddafi had been trying to organise a fight-back from Bani Walid, the commander said, adding: "We have talked to notables from Bani Walid to arrest him and hand him over. They haven't responded."
Sabha
Sabha is a desert town hundreds of miles south of Tripoli, with tens of thousands of inhabitants. Among them are many members of Col Gaddafi's Qadhadfa tribe.
There has been some fighting around Sabha, but the town is said to remain in the control of Gaddafi supporters.
However, the depth of their loyalty is not known. In the past, Col Gaddafi had a number of people in Sabha executed, including members of the Qadhadfa and some of his own cousins. There was reportedly a big anti-Gaddafi demonstration in Sabha a few weeks ago, which is said to have been put down ruthlessly.
Though not as large as Bani Walid, Sabha is significantly further south and may therefore offer better escape options.
Ghadamis
According to a report in the Algerian newspaper El Watan, Col Gaddafi tried to call Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika from the desert town of Ghadamis, close to both the Algerian and Tunisian borders. He was said to be seeking refuge in Algeria, after his wife and three of his children crossed into the country on 29 August. It was not clear when the reported phone call was made.
Another African country
There has previously been speculation that Col Gaddafi might ask for sanctuary in another African country, with Chad, Sudan, Zimbabwe and South Africa all mentioned as possible candidates. But it would be hard for Col Gaddafi to escape undetected by air. Chad, which borders Libya to the south, has now recognised the NTC.
Algeria has held back from recognising the NTC, and it is not a signatory to the statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is seeking the arrest of Col Gaddafi, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, and Abdullah Sanussi. But Algeria's foreign minister has said the his country would not take in the fugitive leader, and a report in the Algerian newspaper El-Chorouk said President Bouteflika had told his cabinet that Algeria would hand Col Gaddafi over to the ICC, should he try to flee to the west.
