Xinhua Middle East news summary at 2200 GMT, Jan. 13

An Egyptian court on Tuesday accepted an appeal against a three-year sentence handed to ousted President Hosni Mubarak over embezzlement and ordered retrial, state media reported.

Last May, the Cairo Criminal Court sentenced Mubarak to three years over embezzling public funds designated for the maintenance of the presidential palace. (Egypt-Mubarak)

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BENGHAZI -- At least three soldiers were killed and four others injured on Tuesday in a suicide attack in Libya's eastern city of Benghazi, a military officer said.

A suicide bomber, who was driving his car, blew himself up at an army check point in western Benghazi, said an officer of al-Jawareh battalion of the Libyan army's special forces. (Libya-Suicide attack)

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DAMASCUS -- At least eight members of the Islamic State (IS) militant group were killed on Tuesday in clashes with Kurdish fighters in northern Syria, a monitor group reported.

The IS attacked positions of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) near the al-Hal marketplace and east of the secure governmental zone in the predominantly Kurdish city of Ayn al-Arab, or Kobane, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (Syria-IS)

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JERUSALEM -- Israel's deficit for 2014 was 29.9 billion shekels (about 7.59 billion U.S. dollars), down 1.2 billion shekels from target, mainly due to deep cuts in social services by the government, said the Finance Ministry Tuesday.

The deficit in 2014 was 2.8 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP), versus a targeted 3.0 percent of GDP, according to figures released by the Finance Ministry's General Accountant. (Israel-Economy) Endit