Morning Brief, Tuesday, March 25

Asia

AAMIR QURESHI/AFP/Getty Images

Moments after being sworn in, Pakistan's new prime minister ordered the release of top judges who had been under house arrest. If the judges are reinstated, it may spell curtains for President Pervez Musharraf. Meanwhile, U.S. State Department envoys John Negroponte and Richard Boucher have arrived in Islamabad for a possibly ill-timed visit.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice wants China to talk to the Dalai Lama.

Afghan NGOs say aid to their country is "wasteful and ineffective."

Middle East

U.S. President George W. Bush says the Iraq war "will merit the sacrifice." The New York Times reports that Bush has received plans to keep troop levels roughly the same throughout 2008.

Followers of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr are going on strike. Fighting is reportedly heavy in the southern oil port of Basra. McClatchy asks: Is the surge coming apart?

Israel says it will allow a Palestinian security force to take over the West Bank city of Jenin.

Europe

In an interview with the Financial Times, Russian President-elect Dmitry Medvedev says no to NATO expansion.

Belarus says it has uncovered "a group conducting espionage for the United States."

Elsewhere

With yields on U.S. Treasury bonds extremely low, investors are turning elsewhere for higher returns.

Wall Street surged on Monday, and Tuesday was a good day for global equity markets.

Welcome to South Africa's prison for TB patients.

Today's Agenda

• President Bush hosts the king of Bahrain at the White House.
• Greece celebrates its independence from the Ottoman Empire.

Yesterday on Passport

• What We’re Reading
• Somebody needs a hug
• How to fight the next generation of terror