AP News Digest 7:45 a.m.

Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EST. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.

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TOP STORIES

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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-KHERSON'S STRUGGLE — Sunday marks exactly one month since Russia’s troops withdrew from Kherson and its vicinity after an eight-month occupation, sparking jubilation across Ukraine. But life in the southern city is still very far from normal. The departing Russians left behind all sorts of deadly booby traps, and their artillery continues to batter the city from new, dug-in positions across the Dnieper River. By Inna Varenytsia and Jamey Keaten. SENT: 910 words, photos.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-WINTER — Coronavirus-related hospital admissions are climbing again in the United States. Older adults make up a growing share of U.S. deaths. And less than half of nursing home residents are up to date on COVID-19 vaccinations. These alarming signs point to a difficult winter ahead for the oldest Americans and the people who care for them. By Carla K. Johnson and Laura Ungar. UPCOMING: 1,100 words, photos by 10 a.m.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHINA — Facing a surge in COVID-19 cases, China is setting up more intensive care facilities and trying to strengthen hospitals as Beijing rolls back anti-virus controls that confined millions of people to their homes, crushed economic growth and set off protests. President Xi Jinping’s government still is officially committed to stopping virus transmission, the last major country to try. But the latest moves suggest the ruling Communist Party will tolerate more cases without quarantines or shutting down travel or businesses as it winds down its “zero-COVID” strategy. By Joe McDonald. SENT: 930 words, photos.

ELECTION GRANTS — A nonprofit that became a point of controversy for distributing hundreds of millions of dollars in election grants during the 2020 presidential campaign is releasing a fresh round of money to local election offices, including in states where Republican lawmakers voted to ban the practice. By Harm Venhuizen, AP/Report for America. UPCOMING: 1,260 words, photos by 10 a.m.

OBIT-PITMAN HUGHES — Dorothy Pitman Hughes, a pioneering Black feminist, child welfare advocate and lifelong community activist who formed a powerful speaking partnership with Gloria Steinem and appeared with her in one of the most iconic photos of the second-wave feminist movement, has died. She was 84. By Jocelyn Noveck. SENT: 810 words, photos.

SHOPPER-WORKER DISCONNECT — More than two and a half years into the pandemic, many businesses have had to curb their hours of operations or services as they continue to grapple with labor shortages. The changes are creating a disconnect between customers who want to shop and dine like they used to during pre-pandemic times and exhausted employees who no longer want to work those long hours. That push-pull is only being heightened during the busy holiday shopping season. By Anne D'Innocenzio. UPCOMING: 980 words, photos by 9 a.m. This is the Monday Spotlight.

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TRENDING

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SCI-MOON-JAPAN-UAE — A Tokyo company is aiming for the moon with its own private lander. The lander blasted off from Cape Canaveral on Sunday atop a SpaceX rocket. On board is the United Arab Emirates’ first lunar rover and a toylike robot from Japan that’s designed to roll around in the gray lunar dust. SENT: 650 words, photos.

HAWAII-VOLCANO — Scientists have lowered the alert level for the Mauna Loa volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island and say its first eruption in nearly 40 years may soon end. SENT: 270 words, photos.

SIERRA STORM — A winter storm packing powerful winds, heavy rain and potentially several feet of snow is blowing into the Sierra Nevada. On Saturday, it shut down mountain highways, toppled trees and triggered flood watches and avalanche warnings from the coast of Northern California to Lake Tahoe. SENT: 640 words, photos.

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WASHINGTON/ POLITICS

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ELECTION 2022-PSC-LOUISIANA — Newcomer Davante Lewis, a Democrat backed by an environmental political action committee, easily won Saturday’s runoff for a seat on Louisiana’s Public Service Commission — an obscure regulatory body that has received national attention from media, celebrities, climate change activists and major public utility companies. SENT: 640 words, photos.

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NATIONAL

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MENTAL HEALTH-FORCED TREATMENT — New York City’s latest plan to keep mentally ill people from languishing in public is billed as a common-sense strategy to get them help. But the policy will have to navigate a legal challenge, a cool reception from some city lawmakers, and the challenges of bringing more people into the emergency rooms where psychiatrists determine whether patients need hospitalization. UPCOMING: 900 words, photos by 9 a.m.

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INTERNATIONAL

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IRAN — Iran’s currency has reached its lowest value against the dollar with anti-government protests now in their third month. SENT: 390 words, photo.

KOSOVO-SERBIA-TENSIONS — Kosovo police and the local media have reported explosions, shooting and road blocks over night in the north of the country, where the majority of the population is ethnic Serb. That’s despite the postponement of the Dec. 18 municipal election they were opposed to. SENT: 580 words, photos.

PAKISTAN-POLITICS — A son of Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has returned home after four years in London to face corruption charges that were filed against him in 2020. SENT: 250 words, photo.

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SPORTS

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FBC-HEISMAN-TROPHY — Southern California quarterback Caleb Williams has won the Heisman Trophy to make USC the first school to take home college football’s most prestigious player of the year award eight times. TCU quarterback Max Duggan finished second. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.

SOC-WCUP-MOROCCO-SURPRISE SEMIFINALIST — Before arriving in Qatar, Morocco had only won two of its previous 16 matches at the World Cup. The team’s coach had only been in position for four months. Its players were talented but battling a culture of underachievement by the country at major soccer tournaments. So, how has Morocco managed to upset the odds to become Africa’s first World Cup semifinalist in one of the most unlikely stories in the tournament’s history? UPCOMING: 800 words by 10 a.m. photos.

SOC-WCUP-PORTUGAL-ANALYSIS — The fortunes of Portugal’s national team have been inextricably linked with Cristiano Ronaldo for nearly two decades so a new era might be on its way. Ronaldo was in tears as he headed to the locker room following Portugal’s 1-0 loss to Morocco in the World Cup quarterfinals on Saturday. SENT: 550 words, photos.

SOC-WCUP-ENGLAND-KANE — Harry Kane stood ready with the ball resting motionless on the penalty spot late in the match. He started his run, he kicked the ball, and he missed. Badly. England ended up losing to France 2-1 in the quarterfinals. SENT: 410 words, photos.

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HOW TO REACH US

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At the Nerve Center, Elise Ryan can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, (ext. 1900). For graphics and interactives, ext. 7636. Expanded AP content can be obtained from http://newsroom.ap.org. For access to AP Newsroom and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport@ap.org or call 844-777-2006.