Moammar Gadhafi buried at dawn at secret site in Libya desert

Moammar Gadhafi, his son Moatassim and a top aide were buried at a secret location in the Libyan desert at dawn Tuesday with a simple Islamic burial ceremony, Libyan transition authorities said Tuesday.

Al Aan reporter Jenan Moussa said she had obtained the first video of the burial which has been posted to YouTube:

Ibrahim Beitalmal, a spokesman for the Libyan National Transition Council in Misrata, said that one of Gadhafi's nephews, as well as a Muslim cleric, "read a prayer for the dead before Gadhafi's body—along with those of his son Muatassim and former defense minister Abu Bakr Younis—were handed over for burial," the Associated Press reported.

Beitalmal said the secret burial site was "not far" from the Libyan port city of Misrata, where Gadhafi's body had lain on display in a cold storage facility for the past four days. The bodies were washed in Islamic tradition before the burial ceremony, which was held at 5 AM.

Libyan authorities have said they hope to keep secret the location of Gadhafi's unmarked grave, so as to try to ensure that it neither becomes a pilgrimage shrine for the former dictator, nor is defaced by his enemies, the AP report said.

Libya's transition authorities also said Monday that they will conduct an investigation into the circumstances of Gadhafi's execution after his capture alive in his hometown of Sirte late last week.

Reports have alleged that contrary to the NTC's initial claims Gadhafi was killed in cross fire, that he was killed via a point blank shot to the back of the head. In addition, Global Post reported Monday that its analysis of video of a captured Gadhafi before his death last week showed him apparently being sodomized by a member of anti-Gadhafi forces weilding a weapon.

Investigators with the international human rights advocacy group Human Rights Watch also reported Monday that they had discovered the dead bodies of 53 Gadhafi supporters who appeared to have been executed with their hands tied behind their backs. Human Rights Watch research Peter Bouckaert said the abandoned hotel in Sirte where the bodies were discovered "had been under the control of NTC fighters from Misrata before the killings took place," Al Jazeera reported. "Bloodstains on the grass and spent cartridges indicated that some were shot and killed at the spot they were discovered," between Oct. 15 and 19.

Other popular Yahoo! News stories:

U.S. downplays concerns as Libya's leaders declare Sharia law
More discrepancies emerge in Marco Rubio's family history
U.S. pulls out Syria envoy after threats

Want more of our best national security stories? Visit The Envoy or connect with us on Facebook and on Twitter.