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No agreement over burial plans as the hunt goes on for hated son Saif - - The Independentind.pn/niHD8L #Libya
As Libyans came to terms yesterday with the death of Muammar Gaddafi, the hunt for the dictator's best-known son, Saif al-Islam, was under way with fervour.
The fate of Gaddafi's heir apparent remained unclear last night, with a spate of conflicting reports, including one that he was on his way to neighbouring Niger in a convoy of three armoured vehicles to escape the NTC forces which overran Sirte on Thursday and killed his father.
Abdul Majid Mlegta, a senior military commander, told Reuters that Gaddafi's former security chief and brother-in-law, Abdullah al-Senussi, believed to be already hiding in Niger, had been trying to organise safe passage of the dictator's entourage from Sirte to Niger in recent days.
"We are searching for him [Saif al-Islam]. The fighters in the region are on full alert," Mr Mlegta said.
Another account, from Mohammed Alagy, the interim justice minister, claimed that Saif al-Islam had been seized trying to escape from Sirte and was in hospital in the city of Zlitan.
As revolutionary fighters scoured the country, wrangles over the burial of Muammar Gaddafi threatened to cast a shadow over plans by Libya's new leaders for a formal announcement tomorrow of the country's liberation.
The declaration comes as Nato announced last night it is to end its air operations over the country by 31 October.
Some interim officials were said to be in talks with Gaddafi's own tribe about the possibility that the clan would arrange a secret burial to avoid his grave becoming a shrine for loyalists in the future.
A local commander, Abdul-Salam Eleiwa, said: "He will get his rights, like any Muslim. His body will be washed and treated with dignity. I expect he will be buried in a Muslim cemetery within 24 hours."
But the interim oil minister, Ali Tarhouni, said he proposed delaying the burial for several days to dispel any doubts the dictator was dead. Dozens of people, many with mobile phone cameras, filed in to see it for themselves.
