Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told ABC News' Diane Sawyer on Tuesday that people close to Col. Moammar Gaddafi were reaching out to allies around the globe trying to figure out what the Libyan dictator's options are as coalition forces attack his military assets.

"We've heard about other people close to him reaching out to people that they know around the world -- Africa, the Middle East, Europe, North America, beyond -- saying what do we do? How do we get out of this? What happens next?" Clinton said. "I'm not aware that he personally has reached out, but I do know that people allegedly on his behalf have been reaching out."

Clinton said some of Gaddafi's actions amounted to "theater" and "game playing."

"A lot of it is just the way he behaves. It's somewhat unpredictable. But some of it, we think, is exploring. You know, what are my options, where could I go, what could I do. And we would encourage that."

Secretary Clinton also told Sawyer that the U.S. has unconfirmed reports that one of Gaddafi's sons might have been killed. ABC News reported that a Libyan pilot may have killed Khamis Gaddafi, 27, in a suicide attack.

The U.S. is currently engaged in an international military effort in Libya, Operation Odyssey Dawn. Clinton, who has repeatedly said that Gaddafi must leave power, did not say whether she was confident that the military action would remove the dictator from power.

She said: "If we want to see a stable, peaceful, hopefully someday democratic Libya, it is highly unlikely that can be accomplished if he stays in power as he is."

Watch the interview here.