Wed Apr 2, 3:33 PM ET

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GAZA CITY (AFP) - More than 100 Palestinians, including 26 children, were killed in the West Bank and Gaza Strip (news - web sites) in March by the Israeli army, the Palestinian health ministry said in a report.

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"Some 101 people were killed, including 26 children, and 638 wounded during this period," the report said.

The ministry said sanitary conditions were "deteriorating" in the Palestinian territories. The West Bank has been almost entirely reoccupied by Israeli troops for months.

The ministry also warned against the "exploitation by the Israeli government of the international situation to continue its aggression against the Palestinian people," in an allusion to the US-led war on Iraq (news - web sites).

The statement also complained that Palestinian hospitals, medical centers and ambulances had been targeted by Israeli soldiers, or during Israeli operations in the occupied territories.

It called on UN Secretary General Kofi Annan (news - web sites) to pressure Israel to respect international conventions.

On March 31, the US State Department released its global review of human rights practices for 2002, where it noted that Israel's human rights record in the territories was "poor" and that among its "serious" abuses were the killings of civilians during military operations aimed at Palestinian extremists.

The Palestinian Authority (news - web sites) was also criticized for its human rights record as well as failing to curb deadly anti-Israeli attacks, including on civilians.

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