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Xinhua world news summary at 0030 GMT, March 4

Xinhua, March 4, 2017 Adjust font size:

Marine Le Pen, French far-right presidential candidate, on Friday refused to attend a questioning by magistrates investigating into the allegation that she used European parliament fund to pay her party staff, according to local report.

Le Pen, citing her parliamentary immunity, told judges in a letter she will accept to answer their questions over the fake job affair after the two-round election scheduled for April 23 and May 7, news channel BFMTV said. (France-Probe-LePen)

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GENEVA -- The UN Special Envoy for Syria said Friday that the latest round of Syria peace talks has yielded tangible progress, and that he plans to reconvene with delegations later this month for a fifth round of negotiations seeking to broker an end to the six-year conflict.

According to Staffan de Mistura, who has mediated the proximity talks since Feb. 23, while no breakthrough has been achieved negotiations have produced an agenda which will form the backbone for future rounds of talks.(UN-Syria-talks)

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KATHMANDU -- The long-term opening maintenance project of Nepal's Arniko Highway, the oldest and shortest route that connects the two neighbors Nepal and China, has been completed.

The official handover ceremony of the project was held in the capital city on Friday amid the presence of government officials, officials of Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu and technical team of the construction company.(Nepal-China-Highway)

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ISTANBUL -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday waded into the latest spat with Germany, saying Berlin has to be judged for helping and acting as an accessory to terrorism.

"Hundreds of terrorists are currently in Germany terrorizing," Erdogan was quoted as saying in a meeting in Istanbul. "And we are going to reveal all." (Turkey-Germany-Row)

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BAGHDAD -- The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Friday condemns the use of chemical weapons during the battle of Mosul.

Robert Mardini, ICRC's Regional Director for the Middle East, said that during the past two days, Rozhawa hospital, close to Mosul, has admitted five children and two women showing clinical symptoms "consistent with an exposure to a blistering chemical agent." (Iraq-IS-Attack) Endi