NATO has criticised a report by Human Rights Watch (HRW), urging it to investigate civilian deaths from air strikes during the alliance’s offensive against Colonel Gaddafi’s forces.
HRW claims in its report released on Monday that over 72 civilians were killed in 8 separate NATO air strikes.
“We're calling for prompt, credible and thorough investigations," HRW's Fred Abrahams told BBC News.
"Until now, NATO has taken a position of denial [...] I think it will lead to unnecessary civilian deaths in the future if NATO refuses to look at what went wrong and make corrections."
NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu said the alliance conducted the offensive "with unprecedented care and precision" and that they "did everything possible to minimise risks to civilians".
"But in a complex military campaign, that risk can never be zero," spokeswoman Oana Lungescu acknowledged.
She added that the alliance "looked into each credible allegation" of attacks on civilians and "confirmed that the specific targets struck by NATO were legitimate military targets".
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