Ukraine All eyes fell on the supreme court of Ukraine after the two bitter presidential rivals agreed that the judges must decide how to resolve their furiously contested election -- with the option of a new poll seeming likely. Iraq The United States announced plans to increase its forces in Iraq to their highest levels since last year's invasion, as the country's interim government engaged in a flurry of contacts to rally support for January 30 elections. Mideast The central committee of the dominant Fatah faction condemned a decision by its jailed West Bank leader Marwan Barghuti to run for the post of Palestinian president and reiterated its support for the official candidate, Mahmud Abbas. Philippines Gale-force winds from Typhoon Nanmadol blacked out the eastern Philippines disrupting rescue efforts for victims of a previous storm that left nearly 600 people dead or missing elsewhere, officials said. Rwanda International concern was growing after Rwandan President Paul Kagame announced that his country's troops will launch an operation in pursuit of Rwandan Hutu rebels in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Mideast The Israeli government was plunged into turmoil as Prime Minister Ariel Sharon reacted to a crushing defeat of his budget in parliament by sacking the junior partner of his ruling coalition. US An intense gun battle broke out just outside Haiti's presidential palace, injuring four people as US Secretary of State Colin Powell met with top local officials, authorities said. UN World diplomats gave a show of support for embattled Secretary General Kofi Annan, who is facing mounting criticism over the UN role in Iraqi oil sales under Saddam Hussein. Bosnia The European Union's biggest military operation began in Bosnia as the 25-nation-bloc takes over peacekeeping duties from NATO, nine years after the end of the bitter inter-ethnic war in the Balkan country. North Korea Fifteen North Korean asylum seekers held in protective custody at the Japanese embassy in Beijing since the beginning of September have been allowed to leave China, diplomats said. US Greenpeace accused the United States of "environmental racism" for evading liability from the world's worst industrial accident in India that may have killed more than 20,000 people.