Iraq Iraq closed its borders and imposed stringent security, but could not stop insurgent strikes that killed at least 18 people in the final hours before the country's historic election. Iraq At least 18 people were killed in a series of attacks by insurgents on the eve of Iraq's historic election, including a suicide bombing at a polling station which killed a child and seven adults, including three soldiers, said police and the US military. Iraq Iraq announced a one-month extension of the country's state of emergency, giving the Iraqi government the right to impose curfews and restrict movement around the country. China The first direct flights between bitter rivals China and Taiwan since the end of a civil war 55 years ago started, carrying Lunar New Year holidaymakers amid hopes for improving cross-strait relations. China Former Chinese party chief Zhao Ziyang was cremated in a tightly controlled funeral as Beijing signalled it had no intention of changing its stance on the reformist leader purged for opposing the 1989 Tiananmen massacre. Mideast Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will meet new Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas in two weeks, a Palestinian official said, as the two sides prepared to discuss the transfer of security control in parts of the West Bank, fueling real optimism about progress towards peace. Iran Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned European powers that they must take their nuclear negotiations with Iran seriously, otherwise Tehran would reconsider its cooperation. Switzerland Chinese Deputy Prime Minister Huang Ju told global leaders that his country could not fully develop on its own, saying Beijing saw a socialist market economy as being far from perfect. Sudan At least 14 people have been killed in clashes between supporters of an armed rebel group in eastern Sudan and security forces in Port Sudan, on the Red Sea, the local governor said.