Hello everyone,

We'll kick things off in Pakistan today at the International Desk with a report on the Pakistani military's offensive against Taliban elements in the Swat Valley.

We'll also be looking at the misery this is creating for hundreds of thousands of civilians fleeing the conflict zone. I'll be asking the head of Pakistan operations for "Doctors Without Borders" what conditions are like on the ground for his colleagues in Pakistan.

Also today, we'll cover the latest economic figures to confirm the rebound investors had so hoped wasn't far off could in fact be, well, far off.

Weekly jobless claims in America are worse than expected. Add to that the dreadeful retail sales figures out earlier this week and it's looking like the green shoots of recovery may have become victims of a late spring frost. And before you ask, yes, we love metaphors at the Idesk.

We'll also be discussing a very interesting internet phenomenon involving our very own Idesk poll. On Monday, we asked our viewers if they felt the international community should intervene to stop the bloodshed in Sri Lanka.

We usually get anywhere between a few hundreds and a few thousand responses on a typical poll. On the Sri Lanka question: 1.3 million invidivual people/computers took part in the vote.

I will appear – in the hour immediately following the International Desk – on Connect the World to analyze what happened: a massive online campaign by Tamil supporter websites to vote in favor of international intervention, a passionate online community with a huge interest in making this story a top web item and an information battle between those who support the government of SL and those on the side of the Tamil fighters.

All that plus the rest of the day's top news, as always!

See you on TV,

Hala

Posted by: CNN Anchor, Hala Gorani
Filed under: Today At The I-Desk