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Xinhua world news summary at 1500 GMT, Feb. 8

Xinhua,February 08, 2018 Adjust font size:

CAPE TOWN -- Two South African opposition parties on Thursday urged Parliament Speaker Baleka Mbete to schedule an urgent sitting of Parliament for the motion of no confidence in President Jacob Zuma to be debated and voted on.

South Africa cannot continue to be held in limbo while Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, Zuma and their respective factions continue to fight over the terms of Zuma's exit, Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Mmusi Maimane said. (South Africa-Zuma-No-confidence motion)

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MALE -- The Maldivian government has invited its foreign development partners to visit the island country to assess the current situation, the country's foreign ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

The foreign ministry assured the international community that despite the declaration of the state of emergency on Feb. 5, no curfew had been imposed and general movement of people, services and businesses would not be affected. (Maldives-Political turmoil)

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SEOUL -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Thursday said he appreciates China's role on the Korean Peninsula issue, saying his country is willing to work closely with China to push forward inter-Korean dialogue facilitated by the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics. (South Korea-China-Korean Peninsula issue)

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RAMALLAH -- Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah urged Thursday the UN Middle East Peace Envoy Nikolay Mladenov to intervene to halt Israel's military and settlement "escalations" against Palestinians.

"The international institutions, particularly the UN, must take serious steps to press Israel to halt its military and settlement escalations," Hamdallah said in an press statement. (Palestine-Israel)

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ANKARA -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin agreed by phone early Thursday to hold next Syria summit between Turkey, Russia, Iran in Istanbul.

During the phone conversation, two leaders discussed the Syrian crisis, including the latest developments in Idlib and Afrin regions, and exchanged views on the Astana process, presidential sources said citing by state-run Anadolu Agency. (Russia-Turkey-Syrian crisis) Enditem

 

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