The former Iraqi information minister has been offered an analyst position with Dubai-based news channel Al Arabiyya

Sahaf was the public face of the Iraqi  government for the duration of the war

Ali al-Hadethi, supervisor of the Dubai-based Al Arabiyya satellite channel, told Reuters that Sahaf, who does not figure on Washington's list of 55 most-wanted Iraqis, was welcome to join the network immediately as a commentator and analyst.

Hadethi said he did not know the former minister's whereabouts and asked him to contact Al Arabiyya to take up his job.

"We want to benefit from the experience of Mr Sahaf and his analysis of the current situation and the future of Iraq," Hadethi said, without giving details of the job package.

Dubai and more TV fame beckon for the former Iraqi information minister

The report said Sahaf had left the northern city of Mosul four days ago and was staying at his aunt's house in the capital's Palestine Street.

It quoted a representative of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) who said that US troops had refused to take Sahaf into custody because he did not figure on the American most-wanted list, but that negotiations were continuing.

Al Arabiyya television executive Hadethi said Sahaf "was a member of the former regime and had to say what the government wanted. He was repeating what was being given to him without being able to verify the truth".

Hadethi said his network was already using Saddam's former UN ambassador, Mohammed Aldouri, as an analyst in Dubai.

One of the war's most recognisable faces, Sahaf's charisma made him a world favourite

Sahaf, with his trademark beret and standing behind a forest of microphones, quickly built up a worldwide following as his daily briefings departed more and more from reality.

The Iraqi information minister's press conferences acquired him a cult status, beating hands-down the rival briefings offered by the US-led alliance in Doha.

A Sahaf appreciation website even sprang up only to be forced offline by a rush of global interest that attracted up to 4,000 hits per second.

Once Saddam had been toppled, even US President George W Bush admitted he was a Sahaf fan.

"He's my man, he was great," Bush enthused in an interview with NBC's Tom Brokaw. "Somebody accused us of hiring him and putting him there. He was a classic."