Ukraine Tens of thousands of opposition supporters in Ukraine marched on the country's parliament as a political crisis over a disputed presidential vote engulfed the bitterly divided country. Ukraine Western governments and observers blasted Ukraine's presidential election as rigged in favour of its pro-Moscow prime minister, leading to what one called "North Korean"-style results. Iraq UN chief Kofi Annan called on Iraq's neighbours and the international community to join forces in working to restore stability and back elections in the war-wracked country, during a conference in this Red Sea resort. Iraq Toppled Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein will go on trial on charges of crimes against humanity by the end of the year, the country's Defence Minister Hazem Shaalan told a newspaper. Mideast New PLO chief Mahmud Abbas promised to follow in the footsteps of Yasser Arafat after he was picked by the dominant Fatah faction as its candidate to succeed the late Palestinian leader. Iraq The Middle East quartet pledged to pool resources to guarantee the success of Palestinian elections in January, in a bid to inject new life into the moribund peace process after the death of Yasser Arafat. Afghanistan Three United Nations hostages were freed in Afghanistan after almost four weeks in captivity, amid conflicting claims over whether the government promised to free Taliban prisoners in exchange for their release. AIDS More than three million people will have died from AIDS in 2004 and nearly 40 million now have HIV, the highest tolls in the 23-year history of acquired immune deficiency syndrome, the United Nations reported. AIDS The booming sex trade has contributed to an HIV/AIDS crisis in Asia with more than eight million people now living with the virus and numbers rising sharply among women, the United Nations reported. Britain The British government announced a range of new measures to fight global terrorism and organized crime, as Queen Elizabeth II set out its new lawmaking agenda ahead of expected polls next year. India Pakistan Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz arrived in New Delhi for key talks on Kashmir with Indian leaders after earlier playing down a spat over the scope of their peace negotiations. Cuba Presidents Fidel Castro of Cuba and Hu Jintao of China signed 16 economic cooperation agreements, including a lucrative investment in Cuban nickel production, only hours after the third visit by a Chinese leader here began.