May Faces Confidence Vote | Kenya Ends Militant Siege

A day after her divorce deal with the European Union was emphatically rejected in Parliament by 230 votes, the British prime minister now faces the prospect of losing her job in a confidence vote this evening. While May could be safe for now — thanks to backing from Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party and her own Conservative Party — yesterday’s bruising defeat highlights the increasing likelihood of a messy Brexit, or even a new referendum that could reverse the 2016 vote. Meanwhile, Germany is calling for new talks between London and Brussels.

Somali terror group al-Shabab has claimed responsibility for an attack that began Tuesday and left 14 people dead at a luxury hotel complex in the Kenyan capital. By Wednesday morning, President Uhuru Kenyatta said security forces had evacuated more than 700 civilians and killed all four gunmen after a 19-hour siege. Paralleling al-Shabab’s 2013 Westgate Mall attack in Nairobi that left 67 people dead, the militants appeared to again target wealthy Kenyans and foreigners. The attack also roughly coincided with the prosecution of three men for that assault.

Appearing on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, the Democratic senator from New York said she’ll vie for her party’s nomination in 2020. A vocal critic of President Donald Trump, the 52-year-old is a prominent crusader against sexual assault in the military and on college campuses, and an advocate for increasing women’s representation in politics. Last year, Gillibrand told OZY “anything can happen” when people are “willing to fight for what they believe in.” She’ll kick off her campaign on Friday with a three-day tour of Iowa.

In courtroom testimony yesterday, a former personal aide to notorious drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman claimed the cartel boss paid former Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto a $100 million bribe in 2012. While Peña Nieto hasn’t commented on the allegation, his former chief of staff called the charge “defamatory and absurd.” Extradited in 2017, the 61-year-old is standing trial in New York, where so far testimony had only implicated lower-level politicians, police and military officials. It’s still unclear whether Guzman himself will testify.

Know This: A new caravan of some 500 Honduran migrants is heading toward the U.S. border. China’s central bank has pumped $83 billion into the country’s financial system to avoid a cash crunch. And Netflix has raised subscription prices to prop up its aggressive spending on content.

#OZYfact: Local governments in U.S. coastal areas like Miami-Dade County forecast a sea level rise in the range of 2.5 to 6 feet by the year 2100. Read more on OZY.

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Calling population growth a “ticking time bomb,” the country’s Supreme Court urged the government, civil society and religious leaders yesterday to back measures limiting families to two kids. A 2017 census found around 207.8 million people lived in 32.2 million households, making Pakistan the world’s fifth most populous country — and sparking the judges to order the growth rate be lowered from 2.4 to 1.5 percent by 2025. Meanwhile, the Pakistan Medical Association warned of strained resources, as the country could soon surpass Indonesia as the fourth most populous nation.

He didn’t phone this one in. In a rare public appearance Tuesday, Ren Zhengfei denied claims the telecommunications giant has spied for the Chinese government, saying he’d refuse to share data with authorities if asked. In an apparent sign of conciliation with the U.S., the 74-year-old former army engineer — whose daughter was arrested in Canada last month for allegedly violating American sanctions against Iran — said he’ “never do anything to harm any country in the world.” Pledging his support for China’s Communist Party, Ren also described President Trump as a “great president.”

Facing a funding crunch amid the U.K.’s impending withdrawal from the European Union, the National Health Service badly needs to cut costs. One option: Promoting preventative care programs, such as those aimed at fighting loneliness. Experts say social isolation is as physically harmful as smoking 15 cigarettes per day, so backing robust counseling efforts early on — with help from local authorities and volunteers — could help ease the financial burden down the road. If properly funded, such bespoke solutions could prove crucial for Britain’s health care system.

She’s unapologetic. The multi-Grammy-winning artist filed a lawsuit yesterday claiming her father, Ronald Fenty, and his business partner solicited millions of dollars from third parties by falsely claiming their company, Fenty Entertainment, was acting on her behalf. Rihanna charged that the two committed her to 15 shows in Latin America for $15 million without her knowledge — though the suit also complained the company ignored several previous cease-and-desist orders. Last year, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office denied her father’s attempt to trademark the name “Fenty.”

The former MLB closer was arrested this week in Denton County, Texas, on charges that he sexually abused a minor over the span of two years. Wetteland, a Rangers franchise Hall of Famer, retired in 2000 as the team’s all-time saves leader. He earned a World Series MVP honor with the Yankees in 1996. The 52-year-old stands accused of beginning the abuse when the child was 4 years old. If convicted, Wetteland — who posted a $25,000 bond — faces a minimum of 25 years in prison.