AP News Digest 3:15 a.m.
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TOP STORIES
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JAPAN-KISHIDA — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was evacuated unharmed after someone threw an explosive device at a campaign event in a western port city, officials say. Police wrestled a suspect to the ground as screaming bystanders scrambled to get away and smoke filled the air. By Mari Yamaguchi and Foster Klug. SENT: 590 words, photos.
LEAKED DOCUMENTS-MILITARY-ONLINE GAMING — The enthusiasm military personnel have for online gaming — and the risk that carries — are in the spotlight after a 21-year-old Massachusetts Air National Guardsman was charged with illegally taking and posting highly classified material on a social media platform that started as a hangout for gamers. By Tara Copp. SENT: 900 words, photos. With LEAKED DOCUMENTS-SUSPECT — Leak suspect yearned to join military but then regretted it (sent).
ELECTION 2024-REPUBLICANS-ABORTION — Leading Republicans are struggling to navigate the politics of abortion as they concede — publicly and privately — that the GOP’s anti-abortion policies are unpopular with the very voters they need to win the presidency. But in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis, a top Republican presidential prospect, is leaning in. By Steve Peoples and Anthony Izaguirre. SENT: 1,450 words, photos. This story moved as the Sunday spotlight.
JAPAN-G7-CLIMATE — Energy and environment ministers of the Group of Seven wealthy nations met Saturday in northern Japan, seeking to reconcile the world’s heavy reliance on fossil fuels with the urgency of ending carbon emissions to stave off the worst consequences of climate change. By Elaine Kurtenbach and Mari Yamaguchi. SENT: 850 words, photos.
BOSTON-MARATHON-BOMBING-ANNIVERSARY — A decade after two homemade bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, the city will mark the somber occasion with prayers for those who died and activities demonstrating the community’s resilient spirit. SENT: 750 words, photos.
CLIMATE-SPAIN-GREEN-ENERGY — In Spain, the dream of an emissions-free future for heavy industry starts with a rugged Castilian hillside covered in solar panels, and ends with an ice-cold beer. When the beer will be available, and how much it will cost, depends on an intervening rollout of green hydrogen. By Jennifer O'Mahony. SENT: 1,170 words, photos.
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RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
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RUSSIA-CONSCRIPTION-BILL — Russian President Putin has signed a bill allowing authorities to issue electronic notices to draftees and reservists amid the fighting in Ukraine. SENT: 550 words, photos.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR — The battle for Bakhmut is heating up again, analysts and Russian officials say, as Ukrainian defenders of the devastated city resisted a coordinated three-pronged attack by the Kremlin’s forces and efforts to stop supplies from reaching them. SENT: 470 words, photos.
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MORE NEWS
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POLICE-SHOOTING-WRONG-ADDRESS — Authorities in northwestern New Mexico on Friday released body camera footage of police officers opening fire and killing a homeowner after they showed up at the wrong address in response to domestic violence call. SENT: 530 words, photo.
TRUMP-FINANCIAL-DISCLOSURE — Former President Donald Trump says he’s not making much money from his social media network but estimates it is worth between $5 million and $25 million, according to his personal financial disclosure form. SENT: 350 words, photos.
BKN-SHAWN KEMP-ASSAULT CHARGE — Prosecutors in Washington state have charged former NBA star Shawn Kemp with first-degree assault in a parking lot shooting last month over a stolen cellphone, saying that in a text message just before the shooting, Kemp wrote, “I’m about to shoot this (expletive).” SENT: 420 words, photos.
SUPERBLOOM-CALIFORNIA-ARIZONA — The tiny rain-fed wildflowers, no bigger than a few inches, are so vivid and abundant across California this year that their hues of purple, yellow and orange look like paint swatches from space. SENT: 470 words, photos.
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WASHINGTON/POLITICS
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ELECTION 2024-PENCE — Former Vice President Mike Pence has ramped up his criticism of fellow Republicans at a GOP donor summit, trying to paint his would-be rivals as straying from party principles as he inches closer to an expected presidential run. SENT: 730 words, photo.
ELECTION-2024-POMPEO — Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said he will not enter the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. SENT: 550 words, photo.
ABORTION-FLORIDA-DESANTIS — Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is making a point to sign some conservative bills in private — including a six-week abortion ban — rather than using a public ceremony to call attention to new laws. SENT: 430 words, photos.
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NATIONAL
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TRANSGENDER-HEALTH-MISSOURI — An emergency rule introduced this week by Missouri’s Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey will impose numerous restrictions on both adults and children before they can receive puberty-blocking drugs, hormones or gender-affirming surgeries. Transgender rights advocates have vowed to challenge the rule in court before it takes effect April 27. SENT: 1,020 words, photos.
TIKTOK-BAN-MONTANA — Montana’s House gave final passage Friday to a bill banning the social media app TikTok from operating in the state, a move that’s bound to face legal challenges but also serve as a testing ground for the TikTok-free America many national lawmakers envision due to concerns over potential Chinese spying. SENT: 640 words, photo.
ABORTION-KANSAS — Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly has vetoed a bill that could have penalized doctors accused of not providing enough care to infants delivered alive during certain kinds of abortion procedures. SENT: 470 words, photos.
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INTERNATIONAL
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VIETNAM-UNITED STATES — Fifty years after the last U.S. combat troops left South Vietnam, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has looked to strengthen America’s ties with its old foes in Hanoi as it seeks to counter China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific. SENT: 560 words, photos.
HONG-KONG-CHINA — China’s senior official overseeing Hong Kong’s affairs says that protests are not the only way for people to express their views, weeks after the city’s strict protest rules sparked controversy while signaling Beijing’s vision for the financial hub. SENT: 530 words, photos.
CHINA-MISSILE-TEST — China says it carried out a successful ground-based mid-course missile interception test in an apparent sign of progress in its ability to bring down weapons incoming from space. SENT: 480 words, photo.
PALESTINIANS-IRAN — Iran’s president has delivered an unprecedented speech to an annual pro-Palestinian rally in the Gaza Strip — a display of Iran’s importance to the Hamas militant group that rules the territory. SENT: 580 words, photos.
MEXICO-MIGRANT-DEATHS — Mexican prosecutors say they have arrested three more officials of the country’s immigration agency for a fire at a detention center last month that killed 40 migrants. SENT: 270 words, photo.
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HEALTH & SCIENCE
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SPACEX-STARSHIP-TEST-FLIGHT — SpaceX has cleared the final hurdle for launching its new giant Starship from Texas as early as next week on a first test flight. SENT: 220 words, photo.
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ENTERTAINMENT
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TV-MAISEL-COSTUMES — The Emmy-winning costume designer of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” has translated the emotional changes of its characters throughout five seasons. Along with a team of costumers, Donna Zakowska has dressed nearly 50,000 extras and principal actors for Amazon Prime Video’s hit show, which launches its last season. SENT: 880 words, photos, video.
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SPORTS
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BKN--BULLS-HEAT — Max Strus and Jimmy Butler scored 31 points apiece, and the Miami Heat got into the playoffs by rallying in the final minutes to beat the Chicago Bulls 102-91 in an Eastern Conference play-in game. Tyler Herro added 12 points and Bam Adebayo grabbed 17 rebounds for Miami, which trailed by six midway through the final quarter. DeMar DeRozan led the Bulls with 26 points and nine assists. SENT: 780 words, photos.
BKN--THUNDER-TIMBERWOLVES — Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs. The Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament. Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his return from exile for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in the first round. SENT: 750 words, photos.
BBA--RAYS-BLUE JAYS — The Tampa Bay Rays lost their first game following a record-tying 13-0 start as Colin Poche forced in two runs with bases-loaded walks and second baseman Brandon Lowe made a key error in a four-run fifth inning that lifted the Toronto Blue Jays to a 6-3 win. George Springer hit a leadoff home run and Bo Bichette had five hits and an RBI. Toronto’s 13-0 record matched the 1982 Atlanta Braves and 1987 Milwaukee Brewers, trailing only the 20-0 start by the 1884 St. Louis Maroons of the Union Association. SENT: 750 words, photos.
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HOW TO REACH US
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