Palestinians appealed to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi on Tuesday to overturn a court ruling sentencing a Palestinian doctor and five Bulgarian nurses to death for infecting hundreds of children with the HIV virus.

"With the utmost respect to the Libyan judiciary, we urge President Gaddafi to use his presidential powers to cancel the death penalty," said Saeb Erekat, a senior aide to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

"This is not a call to undermine the Libyan judiciary, which we respect and honor," Erekat told Reuters.

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Tuesday's ruling marks the latest development in a deeply politicized situation that has drawn condemnation from around the world.

Experts say it could set back oil-exporter Libya's tentative efforts to improve ties with the West.

The six were accused of infecting 426 Libyan children with HIV at a hospital in Benghazi in the late 1990s. More than 50 of them have since died.

The Palestinian doctor, Ashraf Alhajouj, and the nurses have denied the charges. A defense lawyer for the Bulgarians said they planned to appeal against the conviction.

"The verdicts will change nothing. We are innocent," Alhajouj told Reuters from behind the bars of the dock.

Western analysts have said the case is embroiled in power politics and forecast a solution could take many months.

Tripoli has demanded $13.11 million in compensation for each infected child's family.