AP News Digest 3:15 am

APTOPIX Beijing Olympics Freestyle Skiing (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

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.

————————-

TOP STORIES

————————-

UKRAINE TENSIONS — In a flurry of diplomacy across two continents, Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin have met separately for hours with the leaders of Germany and France. They are trying to resolve the crisis in Ukraine, where Russia has massed thousands of troops at the border. The results: no resolution but at least no invasion for now. Biden did vow that Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in Europe will be blocked if Russia further invades Ukraine. By Aamer Madhani, Sylvie Corbet and Vladimir Isachenkov. SENT: 1,160 words, photos, videos. For full coverage of Ukraine.

SUPREME COURT-ALABAMA REDISTRICTING — The Supreme Court puts on hold a lower court ruling that Alabama must draw new congressional districts before the 2022 elections, boosting Republican chances to hold six of the state’s seven seats in the House of Representatives. By Mark Sherman and Jessica Gresko. SENT: 770 words, photo.

OVERDOSE DEATHS — A bipartisan report from a congressional commission says the U.S. needs Cabinet-level leadership and a new multipronged strategy to counter its festering overdose epidemic. The report calls opioids one of the most pressing challenges in national security, law enforcement and public health. By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar. SENT: 610 words, photo.

WOMEN’S BIG AIR — American-born Eileen Gu earned the first of what she and her many fans in Beijing hope could be three gold medals for China by cranking out the first 1620 of her career in the Olympic debut of women’s freestyle skiing big air. By Sports Writer Jake Seiner. SENT: 960 words, photos. With PENG SHUAI-BIG AIR — Peng Shuai watches Gu win Olympic gold; BEIJING-OLYMPICS-THE LATEST; DAY 3-PHOTO GALLERY — A Day 3 filled with crashes at Beijing Olympics.

CIVIL RIGHTS-MASSACRE-SOUTH CAROLINA — Big plans are being realized for a once-segregated bowling alley that stands dark and dusty 54 years after state troopers fired into a crowd of Black students in the killings now known as the “Orangeburg Massacre.” After years of neglect, the National Park Service is helping a non-profit group renovate the All-Star Bowling Lanes, remaking it into a fully-functional bowling alley with a civil rights theme. By Michelle Liu for Associated Press/Report for America. SENT: 680 words, photos.

INDIA-HIJAB-CONTROVERSY — Muslim girls wearing hijab are being barred from attending classes at some schools in the southern Indian state of Karnataka, triggering weeks of protests by students. By Sheikh Saaliq. SENT: 700 words, photos.

————————-

MORE ON THE OLYMPICS

————————-

MEN’S SHORT PROGRAM— Nathan Chen had just shattered the world record for a figure skating short program, even throwing a defiant fist in a rare display of emotion, when he was asked how he’d spend the next 48 hours before his long-awaited Olympic coronation. By Sports Writer Dave Skretta. SENT: 940 words, photos.

CHINA-BEIJING AIR-EXPLAINER — The clear skies greeting Olympic athletes this month is a stark change from just a decade ago when the city’s notorious air pollution often made it difficult to make out nearby buildings. SENT: 710 words, photos, video.

ATHLETES IN ISOLATION — More than 30 athletes at the Beijing Olympics are in isolation facilities after testing positive for the coronavirus, organizers say. SENT: 390 words, photos.

————————-

MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK

————————-

VIRUS OUTBREAK — The governors of Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey and Oregon announced plans to lift statewide mask requirements in schools by the end of February or March, citing the rapid easing of COVID-19′s omicron surge. SENT: 1,190 words, photos, video.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NORTH KOREA — North Korea plans to increase its government spending on pandemic measures by more than 33% in 2022 to carry out leader Kim Jong Un’s calls for a more “advanced and people-oriented” virus response, state media says. SENT: 740 words, photo.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW ZEALAND — Hundreds of people protesting vaccine and mask mandates drove in convoy to New Zealand’s capital and converged outside Parliament as lawmakers reconvened after a summer break. SENT: 360 words, photos.

————————————

TRENDING NEWS

————————————

SAINTS-KAMARA-ARRESTED — Police ID’d Saints’ Kamara as felony suspect before he played in Pro Bowl. SENT: 310 words, photo.

NBC-JONES — Leslie Jones free to post Olympics after third-party error resolved. SENT: 350 words, photo.

—————————-

WASHINGTON

—————————

BIDEN-SCIENCE ADVISER — Biden’s top science adviser Dr. Eric Lander resigns after the White House confirmed that an internal investigation found credible evidence that he mistreated his staff. SENT: 810 words, photo.

SAFE INJECTION SITES — The Justice Department signals it might be open to allowing so-called safe injection sites, or safe havens for people to use heroin and other narcotics with protections against fatal overdoses. SENT: 710 words, photo.

————————-

NATIONAL

————————-

UCLA THREATS-MISSED SIGNS — A trail of red flags about his behavior toward women followed Matthew Harris on an academic journey that took him to three of the nation’s most prestigious universities — Duke, Cornell and then the University of California, Los Angeles. SENT: 1,360 words, photos. An abridged version will be available.

UCLA-GYNECOLOGIST-SEX-ABUSE-SETTLEMENT — The University of California has agreed to pay more than $100 million to settle allegations that several hundred women were sexually abused by a former UCLA gynecologist, lawyers announced. SENT: 430 words, photos.

BREONNA TAYLOR-EX-OFFICER’S TRIAL — Jury selection in the trial of a former Kentucky police officer involved in the deadly raid that killed Breonna Taylor is scheduled to resume after a week of delays. SENT: 320 words, photos.

ELECTION 2022-CAMPAIGN FINANCE — Incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp is far outraising his main Republican primary challenger, former U.S. Sen. David Perdue leaving Perdue with less than $1 million in cash on hand while Kemp had $12.7 million in his main campaign account. SENT: 880 words, photos.

GEORGE FLOYD-OFFICERS-CIVIL RIGHTS — A Minneapolis police officer who oversaw medical training for two of the three former officers charged with violating George Floyd’s civil rights is scheduled to resume testifying in their federal trial about what they were taught. SENT: 860 words, photos. UPCOMING: Trials resumes at 10:30 a.m.

SCHOOL SHOOTING-MICHIGAN — The parents of a Michigan teen charged with killing four students at Oxford High School are scheduled for a preliminary hearing. SENT: 230 words, photos. UPCOMING: Developing from 8:30 a.m. hearing.

SCOTT PETERSON-JUROR MISCONDUCT — A juror in Scott Peterson’s two-decade-old murder trial will be granted immunity before testifying at a hearing that could determine whether a new trial is granted, authorities say. SENT: 470 words, photos.

—————————————

INTERNATIONAL

—————————————

UNITED NATIONS-SANCTIONS CLASH — The United States and its allies clashed with Russia and China in the U.N. Security Council over the usefulness and impact of U.N. sanctions, which are currently imposed on countries from North Korea to Yemen and Congo as well the al-Qaida and Islamic State extremist groups and their affiliates and supporters. SENT: 760 words, photo.

PHILIPPINES-ELECTIONS — Campaigning in the Philippines’ presidential election started with a cast of candidates led by a late dictator’s son and the pro-democracy current vice president, with all vowing to bail out a country driven deeper into poverty by the pandemic and plagued by gaping inequalities and decades-long insurgencies. SENT: 790 words, photos.

OBIT-VINOCUR — John Vinocur, a much-respected foreign correspondent for The New York Times and The Associated Press and later executive editor and columnist at the International Herald Tribune in Paris, has died, his family announced. He was 81. By John Daniszewski. SENT: 580 words, photos.

HORN OF AFRICA-HUNGER — Drought conditions have left an estimated 13 million people facing severe hunger in the Horn of Africa, according to the United Nations World Food Program. SENT: 210 words.

INDIA-ELECTION CAMPAIGN-PHOTO GALLERY — Despite curbs, campaigning continues in India. SENT: 350 words, photos.

————————-

HEALTH/SCIENCE

————————-

EMIRATES-DYING TURTLES — Waves of dead turtles are washing up on a beach in the United Arab Emirates and a marine researcher has found they ate a staggering amount of trash. SENT: 890 words, photos, video.

———————————————

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

———————————————

FINANCIAL MARKETS— Asian stock markets were mixed after Wall Street fell as investors watched for signs of whether global central banks will try to cool inflation by speeding up the withdrawal of economic stimulus. By Business Writer Joe McDonald. SENT: 480 words, photos.

————————-

ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT

————————-

OSCARS NOMINATIONS — Will Smith is poised to notch his third Academy Awards nomination, Denis Villeneuve's science-fiction epic “Dune" is expected to get a lot of love and Oscar nods should be spread across more streaming services than ever. By Film Writer Jake Coyle. SENT: 670 words, photos. UPCOMING: Nominations at 8:18 a.m. With OSCARS NOMINATIONS-SNUBS AND SURPRISES; OSCARS NOMINATIONS-LIST; OSCARS NOMINATIONS-REACTION; OSCARS NOMINATIONS-FACTS AND FIGURES.

————————-

HOW TO REACH US

————————-

At the Nerve Center, Jerome Minerva can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, Wally Santana (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.