Rome, Aug 22 (IANS): Libyan leader Abdesslem Jalloud, a close aide of Muammar Gaddafi, has arrived in Italy along with his family, a media report said.
Jalloud, a former finance minister of the Gaddafi regime, had Friday switched over to the rebel-led National Transitional Council, before entering Tunisia and leaving the Tunisian island of Djerba for Rome by air, Xinhua reported.
Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera said it was not yet certain if Jalloud and his family would remain in Rome or go to any other destination.
Jalloud took part in the revolution of 1969 that brought Gaddafi to power, and had ever since been one of his most important officials up to the 1990s.
The Tripoli government has downplayed his defection, saying Jalloud did not play a central role in the regime structure.