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Xinhua world news summary at 1530 GMT, Sept. 14

Xinhua, September 14, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) said Monday that it is accelerating efforts at the final stage of development for satellites for earth observations, hailing its huge progress in research on developing geostationary satellites.

"Successful progress made in reconstructing and expanding satellite launching grounds for higher-level satellite lift-off has laid a firm foundation for dynamically pushing ahead with the nation's development of space science," the official KCNA news agency quoted the anonymous director of the National Aerospace Development Administration (NADA) as saying. (DPRK-Satellite Launch)

- - - - < DAMASCUS -- At least 20 people were killed and more than 70 others wounded on Monday in twin suicide bombings that rocked Syria's northeastern province of Hasakah, state news agency SANA reported.

A woman and her two children were among the killed, when two explosions rattled the neighborhoods of Khashman and Mahatta in Hasakah, said SANA. (Syria-Bombing)

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CANBERRA -- Malcolm Turnbull, former Australian Minister for Communications, won the party room ballot Monday night to replace Tony Abbott as the leader of the ruling Liberal Party and thus is to become Australia's 29th prime minister.

Turnbull grabbed 54 of the Liberal parliamentarian votes, 10 more than the votes Abbott managed to get. (Australia-PM)

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TOKYO -- Some 45,000 Japanese protestors rallied in front of the country's parliament building in downtown Tokyo late Monday against the government-backed security bills, trying to stop a possible passage of the controversial legislation in the Diet's upper house this week.

The opponents of the security bills came across Japan, including opposition parties' lawmakers, demanded Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's quit from the post and were against the possible forced passage of the bills in the parliament's upper house. (Japan-Rally-Security Bills)

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KABUL -- A total of 355 detainees escaped as militants attacked a jail in Afghanistan's Ghazni province with Ghazni city as its capital 125 km south of the national capital Kabul city Monday morning, Interior Ministry confirmed in a statement released here.

"Some 436 prisoners had been held in Ghazni prison, but 355 of them were able to escape following the attack of terrorists early Monday morning," the statement said. (Afghanistan-Prison Break) Endi