Morning Brief, Thursday, April 10

Asia

China says it has foiled a terrorist plot to carry out suicide attacks at the Beijing Olympics. IOC head Jacques Rogge (pictured) said the Olympics will rebound from its current crisis.

Voting has begun in an historic election in Nepal. Violence has marred the run-up to the vote which will determine whether the country will abolish its monarchy.

President Lee Myung-bak's party won a majority in South Korean parliamentary elections. 

Fifty-four Burmese immigrants died of suffocation while attempting to illegally enter Thailand in the back of a truck.

Middle East

Twenty-three people were killed in clashes between Moqtada al Sadr's militias and U.S. and Iraqi troops in Baghdad.

Senior al Qaeda leader Abu Obaidah al-Masri has died of natural causes.

David Petraeus and Ryan Crocker testified before the House Armed Services Committee.

2008 U.S. Elections

Elton John held a fundraiser for Hillary Clinton and blamed sexism for her lagging poll numbers.

Speaking of which, Barack Obama leads Clinton by 10 points in a nationwide Gallup poll.

Obama joined Clinton in calling for an Olympic boycott.

Europe

Kosovo adopted a new constitution.

British PM Gordon Brown will not attend the opening ceremonies in Beijing.

Russia's prime minister's office may have expanded powers before Vladimir Putin takes it over.

Elsewhere

The Olympic flame's bogus journey took it to San Francisco where it spent the day evading protesters.

Haiti's president told food rioters to "cool it." For the most part, they have.

Microsoft and News Corp may team up to purchase Yahoo.

Zimbabwean voters are being told, "Vote Mugabe or you die."

Today's Agenda 

President Bush will make a speech calling for a suspension of troop withdrawals from Iraq.

The World Bank and International Monetary Fund begin their spring meetings in Washington.

The Defense Advanced Research Project Agency--inventors of computer networking among other things--celebrate their fiftieth anniversary.

Yesterday on Passport

• San Fran switcheroo
• This Week in China
• Kosovo's new constitution: Egyptians have rights too