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Xinhua world news summary at 0030 GMT, Dec.18

Xinhua, December 18, 2015 Adjust font size:

The World Trade Organization (WTO) on Thursday formally approved Afghanistan's membership at its 10th ministerial conference in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

Afghanistan has become the 164th WTO member and the 36th least developed country (LDC) to join the global trade body after 11 years of negotiations. (Afghanistan-WTO Membership)

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BUENOS AIRES -- The Argentine peso dropped by 30 percent against the U.S. dollar Thursday, one day after the government of Argentina announced a decision to scrap capital controls on foreign currency.

At the end of Wednesday, the peso was selling at 9.84 per U.S. dollar but stood at 14 at the end of Thursday, after rising as high as 15 earlier in the day, representing a swing of 52 percent. (Argentina-Currency)

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UNITED NATIONS -- The UN Security Council on Thursday unanimously adopted a resolution to cut off funds for the Islamic State (IS), the extremist group, in a firmer move by the international community to fight terrorism.

Measures such as asset freeze, travel ban and arms embargo will be taken against the IS that controls large swaths of Syria and Iraq, including oil and gas fields, according to the resolution. (UN-IS-Funds)

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ISTANBUL -- Istanbul police on Thursday detained 11 IS militants suspected of planning an attack on the U.S. consulate general, Turkey's media reported.

All the suspects held by the special terror units are Syrians with fake passports, the Hurriyet daily news said, naming a 18-year-old man called Abdulaziz Amin Mojbil as the leader. (Turkey-IS)

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RABAT -- Libya's conflicting parties signed a UN-brokered deal in Morocco on Thursday to end the country's political crises.

The agreement was signed by the rival parliaments, the internationally-recognized House of Representatives in Tubruk and the Islamist self-proclaimed General National Congress in Tripoli, alongside representatives of Libyan political parties, municipalities and civil society groups. (Libya-UN-Deal) Endi