Niger said on Monday it is keeping the son of Moammar Gaddafi, Saadi, under surveillance and has not detained him.
"Nothing has changed in the government's position. There is no international search for him. Like the others he is just under surveillance," a government spokesman said, referring to other Gadhadfi loyalists who have recently fled to Niger.
Earlier reports on Monday indicated Niger had told the United States that it had intercepted Col. Gadhafi's son, Saadi, and was studying what to do with him.
"We have confirmed with the government of Niger that Saadi crossed over [and] that they are either in the process or have already brought him to the capital of Naimey and intend to detain him," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.
Ms. Nuland said Niger was in contact with Libya's interim National Transitional Council and was assessing what to do next both with him and other Libyans linked to the Gadhafi government who have crossed into the country in recent days.
"The government of Niger, as it did with the previous members of the regime, has made clear to the TNC that it is prepared to co-operate with the Libyan Transitional National Council on the disposition of these people," Ms. Nuland said.
"The TNC is trying to make its own decisions about what it thinks the appropriate course of action is."
A Niger cabinet official said last week that the northern African country would respect its commitments to the International Criminal Court if Col. Gadhafi or his sons entered the country.
Britain and other countries in the international coalition backing Libyan insurgents against Col. Gadhafi have said this week they would expect any ICC signatory country to hand the former Libyan leader over to the Hague-based court.
The Niger official said that at least two former senior Libyan officials have been placed "under control" in the northern desert city of Agadez, but stressed that they were accepted into the country on humanitarian grounds.