Here’s what you need to know to start your day.
(Want to get this briefing by email? Here’s the sign-up .)
Good morning. Britain’s government slips into turmoil, the U. S. sanctions Saudi Arabia and Khmer Rouge leaders await their verdict. Here’s what you need to know:
• Britain’s political crisis.
Prime Minister Theresa May’s government slipped into turmoil after two of her cabinet ministers quit, including Dominic Raab, her chief Brexit negotiator.
The surprise resignations dented Mrs. May’s authority a day after her cabinet reluctantly approved a draft plan for the country’s withdrawal from the E. U. There is now an increased risk that she might face a leadership challenge from her own party.
The British pound also took a hit, falling sharply after the day’s news.
But Mrs. May remained unflappable, even amid reports that another minister was considering leaving. “Am I going to see this through?” she said at a news conference at the end of the day, pictured above. “Yes.”
→ What’s in the deal?: One of the biggest points of contention is a so-called backstop plan, in which Britain would remain within the E. U. customs union until better trade deals were negotiated.
→ The reaction: #brexitchaos and #brexitshambles were trending on Twitter.
_____
• Scandals catch up to a Chinese private hospital network.
Putian hospitals seemed promising: the facilities had well-trained specialists and state-of-the-art equipment, patients could book appointments online and the network received billions of dollars in investment from big Wall Street firms. Above, the network’s founder.
But then a cancer patient died at a Putian-linked hospital where he received a discredited form of immunotherapy, prompting national outrage. An investigation followed. Former workers said that hospitals in the group fabricated patient testimonials and even made up the résumés of their doctors.
Here’s how the Putian network grew, from a network of S. T. D. clinics to an empire of 8,000 private hospitals.
_____
• U. S. takes punitive action against Saudi Arabia.
The Trump administration announced sanctions against 17 Saudis accused of being involved with the killing of the dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, above, in Turkey.
The sanctions came just hours after Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor said he was requesting the death penalty for five suspects in the case.
The prosecutor also said that the 15-man team sent to confront Mr. Khashoggi had orders to return him to the kingdom, but decided on the spot to kill and dismember him — shifting the kingdom’s narrative yet again and contradicting Turkish and U. S. findings.
The twin announcements from Riyadh and Washington may be part of an ongoing effort in both capitals to close the case.
But Turkey’s foreign minister declared the new Saudi explanation “unsatisfying” and called for an international investigation .
_____
• Mike Pence’s whirlwind tour of Asia.
The U. S. vice president is at the tail end of a weeklong trip around Asia. And much of his agenda has been focused on one topic: China.
Mr. Pence met with Asian leaders to shore up support to counterbalance China’s increasing influence in the region. And during a stop in Singapore, he promised that President Trump would raise the enforcement of sanctions against North Korea at a meeting with President Xi Jinping later this month.
Mr. Pence heads next to Australia and Papua New Guinea, which is hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit meeting.
The meeting of world leaders has thrust the host country onto the world stage, and is also shining a spotlight on the island nation’s biggest challenges. Among them: domestic violence. Women there experience some of the highest rates of abuse in the world.
_____
• Who rules YouTube? The Indian record label T-Series has the most-watched channel on the video service, beating out international stars like Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber. Above, the set of a T-Series music video.
• U. S. regulators stopped short a threatened ban on flavored e-cigarettes and will allow stores to continue selling them from closed-off areas inaccessible to minors.
• Some luxury brands have been buying up their supply chains, as winemakers and fashion labels face an enviable problem: too much demand for a limited supply of goods.
• Germany’s economy unexpectedly shrank last quarter, adding another threat to European stability just as Italy escalated its dispute with the E. U. over its budget.
• U. S. stocks were mixed. Here’s a snapshot of global markets.
• What to watch for today: A U. N.-backed court will rule in the trial of the last two surviving senior Khmer Rouge leaders, above, accused of roles in the deaths of some 1.7 million people in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979. It could be the tribunal’s last trial. [ AP]
• Japan’s cybersecurity minister shocked Parliament when he admitted he had never used a computer. He also didn’t seem to understand what USB drives were. [ The New York Times]
• 28,529: That’s how many Afghan police officers and soldiers have been killed since 2015, the Afghan president revealed this week, highlighting the immense toll of the war. [ The New York Times]
• The Philippines’ Bells of Balangiga — three church bells that were taken by U. S. forces as war trophies over a century ago — were formally returned, a move meant to bolster relations between the two allies. [ Reuters]
• Michael Avenatti, the lawyer representing the adult film star Stormy Daniels in her legal fights with President Trump, was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence. [ The New York Times]
• In Opinion: An expert on private prisons writes that the U. S. industry could look to Australia and New Zealand, where humane treatment and lowered recidivism are rewarded by the government. [ The New York Times]
Tips for a more fulfilling life.
• Recipe of the day: Busy night? Try sheet-pan fish with garlicky broccolini .
• Picture books to make your kid — and you — giggle and guffaw .
• One thing you can do for the environment: Use the dishwasher .
• Overlooked no more: Pandita Ramabai Saraswati, above, broke every rule for women in 19th century India: She married outside her caste; she traveled the world to give lectures on women’s rights; and she established one of the country’s first women’s shelters and schools. But she never received a Times obituary — until now.
• In Ladakh, a region in northern India hemmed by the Himalayas, our travel writer found soft pashmina scarves, dumplings called momos and regal monasteries. All on a budget.
• Scientists have uncovered a massive impact crater in Greenland created by an asteroid that smashed into the Earth during the last ice age.
