Xinhua world news summary at 1600 GMT, Feb. 3

New Italian President Sergio Mattarella on Tuesday pledged to guarantee the constitutional foundation and rule of law of his country's legal system as he was sworn in at the lower chamber.

Mattarella, a former constitutional judge, in his inaugural address defined the role of head of state as a "referee" who has to make the law punctually applied. (Italy-President)

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KIEV -- Militia of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People's Republic (LPR) in Ukraine's restive east have shot down a government air force plane, LPR leader Igor Plotnitsky said Tuesday.

According to a TASS report, the pilot of the warplane ejected.

The plane, presumably a Su-25 fighter jet, has crashed near the city of Irmino in Lugansk region, while militiamen are still searching for the pilot, Plotnitsky said. (Ukraine-Militia)

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JERUSALEM -- At least eight people were killed and dozens more injured in a massive accident in southern Israel on Tuesday, emergency services said.

Police spokesperson said the accident happened as a bus full of Arab Bedouins passengers from villages in southern Israel's Negev desert, collided with a truck that was carrying a tractor. (Israel-Accident)

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PARIS -- French police arrested eight people suspected of having ties with networks recruiting young French nationals for jihad in Syria, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said on Tuesday.

"The arrested people are suspected of belonging to a jihadist network and actively participating in the recruitment of French youth for jihad in Syria," the minister said.

The suspects, aged between 21 and 46, were arrested in the northern suburbs of Paris and Lyon in southeastern France, he added. (France-Jihad) Endi