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Xinhua world news summary at 0030 GMT, Dec. 27

Xinhua, December 27, 2015 Adjust font size:

The UN special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, on Saturday voiced his hope that he can bring representatives of the Syrian government and opposition together to launch the intra-Syria peace talks in Geneva on Jan. 25.

De Mistura, in a statement issued by his spokesperson in Geneva, said that Jan. 25 is "a target date," and he "has intensified efforts" towards the Syria peace talks to seek a political solution to the Syria crisis. (UN-Syria)

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ISTANBUL -- Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and visiting Prime Minister of Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government Nechirvan Barzani on Saturday pledged cooperation on counterterrorism.

Barzani met with Davutoglu and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul, amid lingering tension between Turkey and the Iraqi central government over recent deployment of Turkish troops to northern Iraq. (Turkey-Iraq-Terrorism)

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BAGHDAD -- Iraqi security forces on Saturday moved deeper into the heart of the city of Ramadi, where they have been fighting for five days in fierce clashes against the Islamic State (IS) militants, a local security source said.

The security forces with paramilitary Sunni tribal fighters, backed by Iraqi and U.S.-led coalition aircraft, have liberated the Houz district after heavy clashes with IS militants, bringing the troops closer to the adjacent government complex in central Ramadi, some 110 km north of Iraqi capital Baghdad, the source told Xinhua. (Iraq-IS-Military)

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DAMASCUS -- A plan to evacuate Syrian rebels from southern Damascus' districts, which was scheduled to take place Saturday, has been frozen due to disagreements among the insurgents about their coming destination, pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV reported.

The rebels divided on whether to go to areas under their control in the northern province of Aleppo or to the de facto capital of the Islamic State (IS) militants in Raqqa in northern Syria, the TV said. (Syria-Rebels-Evacuations) Endi