The Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the Summer Olympiad claims that the "Olympic torch has received a warm welcome worldwide." (Beijing 2008)
The Olympic torch relay through San Francisco descends into confusion as the first runner in the elaborately planned relay disappears into a warehouse on a waterfront pier. (MarketWatch)
American Airlines cancels more than 1,000 flights in order to make sure some wiring on its fleet of 300 MD-80 jetliners was secured correctly inside wheel wells. (The New York Times)
Russia threatens to block Ban Ki Moon from serving a second term as United Nations Secretary-General because of his stance on Kosovo's recent independence. The Kremlin is pressing Ban to ignore, or at least prolong, a proposed 120-day transition period to Kosovo independence from Serbia that expires on 16 June. Renewal of Serbia-Kosovo talks is possible. (Makfax)[permanent dead link]
A call to boycott French hypermart Carrefour from 1 May began spreading through mobile text messaging and online chat rooms amongst the Chinese over the weekend from 12 April, accusing the company's major shareholder, the LVMH Group, of donating funds to the Dalai Lama.[2] There were also calls to extend the boycott to include French luxury goods and cosmetic products.[3] According to the Washington Times on April 15, however, the Chinese government was attempting to "calm the situation" through censorship: "All comments posted on popular Internet forum Sohu.com relating to a boycott of Carrefour have been deleted."[4]
In Malta held the casual election to elect 12 other parliament members, 6 for the Malta Labour Party (MLP) and 6 for the Partit Nazzjonalista (PN), before opening the new parliament of Malta on 11 May, 2008. (DOI Malta)
Sri Lankan Civil War: In fighting in the North of Sri Lanka, the military claims victory with 43 soldiers killed and 33 missing while killing over 100 Tamil Tigers. The rebels also claim victory, saying that they killed 100 soldiers and wounded 500 while only losing 16 of their own. (CNN)(BBC News)
Students and their families in various locations across the United States participate in the nationally-recognized 13th annual Day of Silence. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
It is reported that Josef Fritzl had incarcerated his daughter in a custom-built cellar in Amstetten, Austria, for 24 years, raped her and fathered seven children by her, three of whom he left in the cellar.
The New Zealand Soldier was added to the plinth facing towards the east on the western side of the ANZAC Bridge, it was unveiled by the Prime Minister of New Zealand Helen Clark in the presence of Premier of New South Wales Morris Iemma.
A father-and-son duo who owned and managed the factory that burnt down with 55 deaths in Casablanca have been arrested over serious safety violations. (AFP via Google News)
Grand Theft Auto IV is released worldwide, sparking a windfall of sales. The game would go on to become the fastest selling game in 24 hours by selling 609,000 copies. (TeamBox)(Ars Technica)
The report also states that there has been a 16% increase in terrorist attacks in Afghanistan due to resurgent activity by al-Qaeda and the Taliban. (Fox News)
Two Taliban militants, a woman, and her child are killed after a siege by Afghan security forces in Kabul, Afghanistan. (Reuters)
HP Labs announces the creation of the memristor, at times described as the fourth basic electronic element. The memristor was first predicted in 1971 by Leon Chua. The discovery may have a tremendous impact on computing and electronics, joining the other basic electronic elements the resistor, capacitor, and inductor. (Nature)
