PARIS - French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday urged Libyans to start new era based on forgiveness, unity and reconciliation after the death of former Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi.

"They (Libyans) have a duty of forgiveness, reconciliation and unity. Now, they should turn the page and go towards the future but once again with a worry of reconciliation," Sarkozy was quoted by local television channel BFM TV as saying.

"We should never enjoy the death of a man whatever he did. Gadhafi and his doings presented a real threat for Libya future and now the military operation comes to an end," the president added.

NATO countries are to discuss terms to end the alliance's operation in Libya after Libyan transitional authority announced Gadhafi's death on Thursday.

France pressed for a military operation in Libya to protect civilians from Gadhafi's troops. But the move has been widely seen as an attempt to brighten the image of French diplomacy ahead of the presidential elections next year and to win deals worth billion of euros in the reconstruction of Africa's largest oil exporter.