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Xinhua world news summary at 0030 GMT, Feb. 13

Xinhua, February 13, 2015 Adjust font size:

European Council President Donald Tusk told a press conference on Thursday the European Union (EU) leaders didn't enter into negotiations of the Greece debt issue in the day's informal summit meeting.

He said Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Eurogroup head Jeroen Dijsselbloem had ask the institutions (the Troika) to work on the technical assessment. (EU-Greece)

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BARCELONA -- An explosion in a chemical plant in Barcelona on Thursday has caused a toxic orange cloud that forced people to stay indoors for several hours.

Local media reported that the explosion took place at around 09:45 local time (0845 GTM) in a chemical company called Simar in the polygon of Les Comes, in the city of Igualada, 70 km northwest of the northeastern city of Barcelona. (Spain-Barcelona-Explosion)

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WASHINGTON -- The United States welcomes the ceasefire agreement on the Ukraine crisis reached in the Belarusian capital of Minsk and calls for immediate implementation of the deal, the White House said Thursday.

The leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France announced Thursday a peace deal for an end to fighting in eastern Ukraine following 14-hour marathon talks in Minsk. (U.S.-Ukraine)

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KIEV -- At least 16 people have been killed in the past day in eastern Ukraine as hostilities continued between government troops and pro-independence rebels, authorities said Thursday.

The fatalities came amid hopes that a ceasefire would be established in the restive regions soon after peace talks in Minsk produced a roadmap for an end to fighting. (Ukraine-Minsk)

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JERUSALEM -- Israel's top court rejected Thursday an appeal by the family of U.S. peace activist Rachel Corrie, who was killed in Gaza by a military bulldozer in 2003, shattering any hope by her family to hold Israel accountable for the death.

The Supreme Court upheld a 2012 ruling by a lower court, that exonerated Israel from any wrongdoing and exempted the government from paying the Corrie family civil damages for wrongful death. (Israel-Court-US-Activist) Endi