AP-AP News Digest 3 a.m.
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ONLY ON AP
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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-THE APPARTMENT - The Soviet-era apartment blocks at the end of a tram line in this western Ukrainian city show an indifferent face to the world, blank and gray. But behind every lighted window is a story, never so much as now. Lviv on the surface looks calm, too. But the city is uniquely representative of the 10 million people displaced inside Ukraine since Russia’s invasion, absorbing at least 500,000 new residents. The Associated Press visited one apartment building that holds families from some of Ukraine’s most devastated communities. With AP Photos, Video. UPCOMING.
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TOP STORIES
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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR – Russian forces have attacked along a broad front in eastern Ukraine as part of a full-scale ground offensive to take control of the country’s eastern industrial heartland. Ukrainian officials say Russian forces are focusing in this “new phase of the war” on taking full control of the Donbas. Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Ukrainian forces for eight years in the mostly Russian-speaking region. By Adam Schreck. SENT: 830 words, photos, video. With RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-THE LATEST.
TRAVEL-MASK MANDATE – A federal judge’s decision to strike down a national mask mandate was met with cheers on some airplanes but also concern about whether it’s really time to end the order sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic. The major airlines and many of the busiest airports rushed to drop their requirements after a Florida judge struck down the CDC mandate and the Transportation Security Administration announced it wouldn’t enforce its 2021 security directive. By Curt Anderson. SENT: 760 words, photo. With TRAVEL-MASK MANDATE GLANCE
BORDER MIGRANTS – Migrants attempted to cross the U.S.-Mexico border at the highest level in two decades as the U.S. prepares for even larger numbers with the expected lifting of a pandemic-era order that turned away asylum seekers. The number of migrant encounters has gone up nearly every month since President Joe Biden took office, becoming fodder for political opponents. By Ben Fox. SENT: 690 words, photo.
ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS – Palestinian militants fire a rocket into southern Israel for the first time in months. It’s a potentially major escalation after clashes at a sensitive holy site in Jerusalem and a wave of attacks and military raids elsewhere. Israel says it intercepted the rocket, and there are no immediate reports of casualties or damage. By Joseph Krauss. SENT: 1,040 words, photos.
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TRENDING
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AMAZON-FIRED-WORKER – A judge has ruled Amazon must reinstate a former employee who was fired in the early days of the pandemic after leading a protest calling for the company to do more to protect workers against COVID-19. SENT: 680 words, photos.
SERIAL-KILLER-VICTIM-IDENTIFIED – A victim of the serial murderer dubbed the Happy Face Killer has been identified nearly 30 years after her body was left near a California highway. SENT: 240 words, photo.
ENDANGERED-WOLVES – Prompted by a court order, federal wildlife managers have issued a new draft plan for managing Mexican gray wolves in the Southwestern U.S. SENT: 700 words, photos.
PENOBSCOT TRIBE-RIVER – The U.S. Supreme Court has declined the Penobscot Indian Nation’s appeal in its fight with Maine over ownership and regulation of the tribe’s namesake river. SENT: 330 words, photo.
INFOWARS-BANKRUPTCY-EXPLAINER – Infowars has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as the website’s founder and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones faces defamation lawsuits over his comments that the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was a hoax. The bankruptcy filing in Texas puts civil litigation on hold while the business reorganizes its finances. SENT: 680 words, photo.
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MORE ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE
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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-FOOD SECURITY — Global finance leaders are putting the growing crisis over food insecurity and skyrocketing food prices at center stage as members of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank who are meeting in Washington grapple with the brutal effects of Russia’s war against Ukraine. SENT: 430 words, photos.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-YELLEN — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen plans to meet with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal during this week’s meetings of the IMF and World Bank. At the same time, she’ll be trying to avoid contact with Russian officials. SENT: 560 words, photo.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-DIVIDING IRAN – Russia’s war on Ukraine has exposed just how much Iran has tilted toward Moscow in recent years. The collapse of Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers stoked decades-old, hard-line anger at America. The country’s historic enmity with Russia has also combined with a wider feeling among some that backing Moscow betrays the Islamic Republic’s often-stated message that it stands against the world’s major powers. SENT: 1,090 words, photo.
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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-JAPAN – Japan’s health ministry formally approved Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine, a fourth foreign-developed tool to combat the infections. The approval comes just as the country sees signs of resurgence led by a subvariant of fast-spreading omicron. SENT: 360 words, photos.
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WASHINGTON/POLITICS
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HARRIS-MISSILE TESTS — The Biden administration announces it is barring anti-satellite missile testing by the United States, a move that White House officials say is meant to underscore its hopes of establishing new norms for military action in space. SENT: 640 words, photo.
CAPITOL RIOT-INVESTIGATION — Kimberly Guilfoyle, the fiancée of former President Donald Trump’s eldest son, met with the House committee investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection — more than a month after she abruptly ended a voluntary interview with lawmakers — according to a person familiar with the matter. SENT: 420 words, photo.
ELECTION-2022-SENATE-PENNSYLVANIA-MCCORMICK – Dave McCormick earned more than $22 million last year as CEO of the world’s largest hedge fund — the job he quit to run for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania. McCormick filed a financial disclosure form that offered the public its first detailed look at his finances. SENT: 540 words, photos.
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NATIONAL
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POLICE SHOOTING-MICHIGAN – Patrick Lyoya’s father says he and his family have a right to know the name of the white officer who fatally shot the 26-year-old Black man. But the police chief in Grand Rapids, Michigan, says he will only do so if the officer is charged in the April 4 shooting that followed a brief foot chase and a struggle over the officer’s Taser. SENT: 910 words, photos.
SCHOOL SHOOTING-MICHIGAN – The parents of a Michigan teen who is accused of a fatal school shooting are asking a judge to lower their bond and help release them from jail. SENT: 200 words, photo.
CHICAGO POLICE-LAQUAN MCDONALD – Federal authorities say they will not criminally charge Jason Van Dyke, the Chicago police officer convicted of murder in the 2014 shooting death of Black teenager Laquan McDonald. SENT: 590 words, photo.
WEEKEND SHOOTING-SOUTH CAROLINA – Police say they have identified two more suspects in a Saturday shootout inside a crowded South Carolina mall in which nine people were shot. SENT: 440 words, photos.
HIGH-SCHOOL-CAMPUS-KILLING – Authorities say a 15-year-old girl has been stabbed to death on a high school campus in an apparently random attack. Police and school district officials say the girl was stabbed several times at Stagg High School in Stockton in California’s Central Valley. SENT: 150 words.
OKLAHOMA-OFFICERS-SHOT-TRIAL – The attorney for an Oklahoma man on trial for shooting two Tulsa police officers, killing one of them, feared for his life after a traffic stop. SENT: 320 words, photos.
PRESCOTT WILDFIRE – Officials say mandatory evacuations have been ordered for residents near Mount Union, south of Prescott. SENT: 130 words.
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INTERNATIONAL
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EAST-TIMOR-ELECTION – Voters in East Timor are choosing a president in a runoff between former independence fighters, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jose Ramos-Horta and incumbent President Francisco “Lu Olo” Guterres. Ramos-Horta had a commanding lead in the first-round vote last month. SENT: 660 words, photos.
SOLOMON-ISLANDS – The U.S. is sending two top officials to the Solomon Islands following a visit by an Australian senator over concerns that China could establish a military presence in the South Pacific island nation. SENT: 400 words, photos.
SRI LANKA-ECONOMIC CRISIS – Sri Lanka’s prime minister says the constitution will be changed to clip presidential powers and empower Parliament as protesters call on the president to quit over an economic crisis. SENT: 280 words, photo.
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BUSINESS/ECONOMY
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MANUFACTURING-INCENTIVES-OKLAHOMA – Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt is asking lawmakers to approve a massive package of financial incentives to help lure an unnamed company to the state. Japanese broadcaster NHK reported last week, citing unnamed sources, that Panasonic Corp. was looking at both Kansas and Texas as a potential location for a factory to produce electric-vehicle batteries for Tesla and other vehicle makers. SENT: 460 words, photo.
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HEALTH/SCIENCE
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CALIFORNIA-FLOODPLAINS – California is on the forefront of a new wave of flood risk management that centers on natural engineering over structural. The Dos Rios Ranch Preserve is California’s largest single floodplain restoration project, part of the nation’s broadest effort to rethink how rivers flow as climate change alters the environment. SENT: 1,160 words, photos.
NUCLEAR-TEST-REACTOR-IDAHO – Scientists in Idaho have completed a rare overhaul of one of the world’s most powerful nuclear test reactors. Officials at the Idaho National Laboratory said that normal operations are expected to resume later this spring at the Advanced Test Reactor following low-power system checks. SENT: 420 words, photo.
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SPORTS ___________________
NUGGETS-WARRIORS – Stephen Curry came off the bench for a second straight game and showed he’s healthy at last, scoring 34 points to lead the Golden State Warriors past the Denver Nuggets 126-106 for a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven playoff series. SENT: 970 words, photos.
JAZZ-MAVERICKS – Jalen Brunson scored a career-high 41 points, Maxi Kleber had 25 with eight of Dallas’ playoff-record 22 made 3-pointers and the Mavericks won Game 2 against Utah 110-104 to even the first-round series. SENT:890 words, photos.
RAPTORS-76ERS – Joel Embiid had 31 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 112-97 win over the Toronto Raptors in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference playoffs. SENT: 870 words, photos.
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ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT
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TCM CLASSIC FILM FESTIVAL – Classic film lovers know the importance of a grand entrance and the folks at Turner Classic Movies are pulling out all the stops for the return of the TCM Film Festival this week in Hollywood. After two years of virtual editions because of the pandemic, the festival kicks off with the help of Steven Spielberg, who will be on hand to celebrate the 40th anniversary of “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial.” SENT: 870 words, photo.
BLAC CHYNA-KARDASHIANS TRIAL – Some ordinary people got to let the Kardashians hear exactly how they feel about them in a Los Angeles courtroom. Kim Kardashian and three other members of the famous family sat in on jury selection in a lawsuit brought against them by Blac Chyna, the former fiancée of Rob Kardashian, who says they destroyed her TV career. SENT: 800 words, photo.
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HOW TO REACH US
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