UN leader Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday threw his weight behind a UN report which said NATO did not deliberately target civilians during its air strikes in Libya last year.

The air strikes have divided the UN Security Council with Russia, China, South Africa and India all saying NATO's tactics breached UN resolutions. The United States, Britain, France and Germany all insist their actions were legal.

"The secretary general is aware of the positions members of the Security Council have expressed on this issue," said UN spokesman Martin Nesirky, giving Ban's first official comment on the Libya report released on March 2.

But Ban "has made clear his view that the actions taken by the international community were consistent with the relevant Security Council resolutions."

The International Commission of Inquiry on Libya said 60 civilians were found to have been killed in the NATO attacks, which played a key role in bringing down Moamer Kadhafi.

The commission said it investigated two attacks where there were no military targets, but concluded that NATO "conducted a highly precise campaign with a demonstrable determination to avoid civilian casualties."

Russia and its allies have repeatedly called for NATO to apologize for the strikes and pay compensation.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday accused NATO of staging "massive bombings" at a Security Council meeting, sparking indignant responses from US and European ministers who insist "thousands" of lives were saved by the strikes.

"The secretary general called consistently during the fighting for every effort to be made to minimize harm to civilians. He notes the report's overall finding that NATO did not deliberately target civilians in Libya," Ban's spokesman said.

The UN leader "believes the report and recommendations of the International Commission of Inquiry on Libya provide a strong basis for the Libyan authorities to address human rights issues in Libya," he added.

The UN Security Council on Monday extended for 12 months the UN political mission in Libya, to help the government organize elections, restoring public security and helping stop Kadhafi's weapons reach other countries.

Russia, China and other NATO critics joined a unanimous vote in favor of the council's resolution on the mission.