LAGOS, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Former Liberian leader Charles Taylor, wanted for war crimes by a UN-backed court in Sierra Leone, has "disappeared" from his residence in Nigeria which terminated his asylum three days ago, the Nigerian presidency said on Tuesday.

    "President Olusegun Obasanjo has approved the constitution of a panel of inquiry to look into the circumstances of the disappearance on Monday night ... to ascertain whether he escaped or was abducted," it said in a statement.

    The presidency said that those who were guarding Taylor in the southeastern Nigerian city of Calabar have been arrested.

    At the weekend, Obasanjo told his Liberian counterpart Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf that "Liberia is free to take former president Charles Taylor into its custody," but Johnson-Sirleaf wants her predecessor sent directly to the special court.

    Meanwhile, Obasanjo dismissed a request from the court to arrest Taylor to prevent his escape. His spokeswoman Oluremi Oyo said that Taylor "is not a prisoner" and free to leave.

    Taylor's exile to Nigeria was part of the August 2003 peace deal which ended 14 years of civil war in the west African country and put in place a two-year transitional government until 2005.

    But by then, Taylor had been indicted on 17 counts by the special court in Sierra Leone, for crimes against humanity and war crimes for fueling the civil war there, when he allegedly supported rebels against the Sierra Leonean government in return for "bloody diamonds."

    There had been increased pressure from the international community, especially from the United States government, for Nigeria to have Taylor handed over for prosecution.

    Public reaction to Taylor's extradition has been mixed. Many Liberians want him face the war crimes court in Sierra Leone while some, mostly those considered his loyalists, are opposing his handover to the court on grounds that he may not get a fair hearing.

    There have also been suspicion threats that his loyalists could cause trouble in Liberia should he be handed over to the court. Some of individuals believed to be his loyalists were picked recently for questioning, but security personnel in Monrovia, capital of Liberia, have reportedly been tight-lipped on the issue. Enditem