President Vladimir Putin hailed close ties between the Russian and Turkey militaries as he welcomed Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan for Friday's talks focusing on Syria.

Russia and Turkey co-brokered a cease-fire in December that helped reduce the scale of fighting between Syrian President Bashar Assad and the opposition, and they also co-sponsored two rounds of talks this year between Assad's government and its foes. A third round is set for next week.

The Kremlin denied on Thursday media reports alleging that Moscow has approved the launch of Israeli operations against Hizbullah from Syria's airspace, media reports said.

A spokesman on behalf of the Russian President, Dmitry Peskov, stressed that the issue has not been raised in the context of the Russian and Israeli communications, they said.

China's ceremonial legislature has increasingly become known as a rich man's club but now it plans to give more seats to women, farmers, workers and professionals.

The official Xinhua News Agency reported Thursday that changes to the makeup of the National People's Congress would also reduce the proportion of delegates representing the Communist Party and government, who now constitute about one-third of the roughly 3,000 members.

The state of Hawaii has become the first state to sue to stop President Donald Trump's revised travel ban.

Attorneys for the state filed the lawsuit Wednesday in federal court in Honolulu. The state had previously sued over Trump's initial travel ban, but that lawsuit was put on hold while other cases played out across the country.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said Wednesday that he will not hesitate to strike "terrorist sites" in neighboring countries, after Baghdad carried out air raids in Syria last month.

"I will not hesitate to strike terrorist sites in neighboring countries, if they threaten the security of Iraq," Abadi said in a speech in north Iraq, footage of which was posted online.

Organizers of January's Women's March have called for women to take the day off and encouraged them not to spend money to show their economic strength and impact on American society.

"A Day Without a Woman" on Wednesday is the first major action by organizers since the nationwide marches held the day after President Donald Trump's inauguration that drew millions of women into the streets in protest against misogyny, inequality and oppression. Though it is unclear how many women could participate, thousands across the country have signaled their support and interest online and to employers.

Syrian children show symptoms of "toxic stress" and are attempting self-harm and suicide in response to prolonged exposure to war, according to a report released on Tuesday.

Children do not feel safe at school and are developing speech disorders and incontinence, and some are even losing the capacity to speak, it said.

A Syrian security official says Syrian army units are cleaning land mines and explosives in the historic town of Palmyra hat were left behind by Islamic State militants.

The official says he expects the process to be long and difficult due to the large number of mines planted by the extremist group. He spoke on condition of anonymity Friday in line with regulations.

The Trump administration's back-to-back controversies over its Russian ties now have at least one thing in common: Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

Moscow's top diplomat is a Washington fixture with a sprawling network, and he has emerged as the central figure in the investigations into Trump advisers' connections with Russia. In a matter of weeks, contact with Kislyak led to the firing of a top adviser to the president and, on Thursday, prompted calls for the Attorney General Jeff Sessions l to resign.

A major battle to liberate the Islamic State group's stronghold of Raqqa in northern Syria is looming, with U.S. officials looking to build on momentum from victories on the battlefields of Mosul in Iraq. The Pentagon has drawn up a secret plan to do that, likely leaning on local allies with stepped-up American support.

The question is: who are those local allies in the tangled mess that is Syria's conflict?