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Xinhua world news summary at 1530 GMT, March 1

Xinhua, March 1, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Iraqi security forces on Sunday heavily pounded a town seized by the Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq's northern central province of Salahudin, a provincial security source said.

Meanwhile, military units and government-backed Shiite and Sunni militias intensified their build-up ahead of a major offensive to free the captured towns and areas from the IS, the source added. (Iraq-IS)

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KABUL -- A total of 14 Taliban militants laid down their weapons and four others were killed in Afghanistan over the past two days, official sources said on Sunday.

In the latest incident, 14 Taliban insurgents gave up fighting and joined the government-backed peace process in the northern Badakhshan province on Sunday, Abdul Wahid Taebi, head of the government-backed peace body in the province, said. (Afghanistan-Militants)

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JERUSALEM -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu left Sunday morning for Washington D.C. to speak in front of U.S. Congress on Iran's nuclear program.

The upcoming speech on March 3 drew a lot of criticism and could be considered as one of the most contentious visits by an Israeli leader in the United States in recent history. (Israel-PM-US)

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ALGIERS -- Mali signed a peace agreement with some political military movements from northern Mali in the Algerian capital Algiers on Sunday, the state-run APS News Agency reported.

The United Nations-brokered deal seeks to tackle decades of uprisings and instability in northern Mali. (Mali-Peace Deal)

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CAIRO -- Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered Sunday to redraft an electoral law article which was ruled unconstitutional within one month, state-run Nile TV reported.

Sisi also demanded that "legal measures be considered to avoid delaying the elections," a statement from his office said. (Egypt-Law) Endi