AP News Digest 3 a.m.

APTOPIX Israel Palestinians (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EDT. 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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ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS — Israel unleashed a wave of airstrikes across the Gaza Strip early Thursday, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding several others. The latest strikes came after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back against U.S. pressure to wind down the offensive against Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers, who have fired thousands of rockets at Israel. By Fares Akram and Joseph Krauss. SENT: 780 words, photos.

ISRAEL-POLITICS AND WAR — Israel is at war with Hamas, Jewish-Arab mob violence has erupted inside Israel, and the West Bank is experiencing its deadliest unrest in years. Yet this may all bolster Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. By Josef Federman. SENT: 990 words, photos.

BIDEN-ISRAEL — President Joe Biden has delivered his most pointed messages for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the conflict with Hamas during private conversations while having little to say in public. On Wednesday, Biden told Netanyahu he expected a “significant de-escalation.” By Aamer Madhani. SENT: 1,050 words, photos. With ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS-DIPLOMACY — Biden’s efforts to get Israel to wind down its military operation in Gaza are quickly rejected by Netanyahu. SENT: 900 words, photos.

CAPITOL BREACH-COMMISSION — The House votes to create an independent commission on the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, sending the legislation to an uncertain future in the Senate as Republican leaders work to stop a bipartisan investigation. By Mary Clare Jalonick. SENT: 1,120 words, photos, video. With CAPITOL BREACH-COMMISSION-REPUBLICANS — Thirty-five House Republicans defy leadership, vote to create commission. SENT: 730 words, photos.

SUPREME COURT-NOTEBOOK — Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas says Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s “efficiency became a source of humorous banter as well as a thing of legend” among her colleagues. By Jessica Gresko. SENT: 940 words, photo.

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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

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SYRIA-ELECTION — Syrians cast early ballots in symbolic presidential vote. SENT: 390 words, photos.

PAKISTAN-BUS-ACCIDENT — 13 passengers killed as bus overturns on highway in Pakistan. SENT: 90 words.

CHINA-SPACE STATION — China postpones a supply mission to its new space station Thursday for unspecified technical reasons. SENT: 340 words, photos.

JAPAN-CELEBRITY-MARRIAGE — Stars of hit Japan ‘contract marriage’ show to wed for real. SENT: 360 words, photos.

PARTY-BUS-TWO-KILLED — 2 teens killed in California party bus shooting identified. SENT: 260 words, photos.

PEOPLE-DEMI LOVATO — Boston radio show host, told not to talk about Lovato, quits SENT: 190 words.

NO-HITTER FRENZY — With hits now scarce, no-hitters on the rise. SENT: 700 words, photos.

OBIT-LEE EVANS — Record-setting sprinter, ’68 Olympic activist Lee Evans dies. SENT: 310 words, photos.

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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK

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VIRUS-OUTBREAK-BRAZIL-INVESTIGATION — A former health minister denied receiving any direct orders from President Jair Bolsonaro during his 10 months in the post, providing the first day of his Senate testimony Wednesday that analysts saw as an attempt to shield Brazil’s leader from any blame over the government’s pandemic response. SENT: 790 words, photos.

VIRUS-OUTBREAK-UNITED-NATIONS-AFRICA-IMPACT — The U.N. Security Council called for accelerated availability of coronavirus vaccines for Africa on Wednesday, expressing concern that the continent has received only about 2% of all doses administered globally. SENT: 680 words, photos.

ANTI-VACCINE-MAKING MONEY — A major seller of disinformation about vaccines online has had one of its channels removed from YouTube after an AP investigation detailed how they work with other spreaders of false information to make money. SENT: 600 words, photo.

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MORE ON ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS

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GAZA-HEALTH CRISIS — The Gaza Strip’s already feeble health system is being brought to its knees by the fourth war in just over a decade. SENT: 1,100 words, photos.

UNITED-NATIONS-ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS — The United States says it opposes a proposed U.N. Security Council resolution calling for a cease-fire in the conflict between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers, reiterating that it could interfere with the Biden administration’s efforts to end the hostilities. SENT: 430 words, photos.

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WASHINGTON/POLITICS

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ICELAND-UNITED STATES-RUSSIA — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russia’s longtime Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speak frankly but calmly of their differences as they hold talks on the sidelines of an Arctic Council meeting in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik. By Matthew Lee. SENT: 1,100 words, photos.

TRUMP-LEGAL TROUBLES-EXPLAINER — What does the new criminal inquiry by New York’s attorney general mean for former President Donald Trump? SENT: 870 words, photos.

BIDEN-MEDAL OF HONOR — President Biden will award his first Medal of Honor on Friday to retired Col. Ralph Puckett Jr. for acts of bravery 70 years ago during the Korean War. SENT: 380 words, photo.

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NATIONAL

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TRUMP-LEGAL-TROUBLES-EXPLAINER — Donald Trump is facing a one-two punch of criminal investigations in New York, with the state attorney general’s office saying its ongoing civil inquiry into the former president and his businesses is now a criminal matter. SENT: 980 words, photos.

ROBERT DURST-MURDER TRIAL — The savage and sloppy manner in which Robert Durst dismembered a man he accidentally killed in Texas helps prove the New York real estate heir didn’t murder his best friend or kill his wife, his lawyer says. SENT: 990 words photos.

TEXAS-EXECUTION — A Texas man convicted of fatally beating his 83-year-old great aunt more than two decades ago was executed despite requests from some of the victim’s family to spare his life. SENT: 800 words, photos.

GEORGE-FLOYD-OTHER-OFFICERS — The Minnesota Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments Thursday on whether three former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd’s death should face an additional count of aiding and abetting third-degree murder. SENT: 590 words, photo.

CHICAGO-MAYOR — Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is acknowledging she hasn’t accomplished much of what she hoped when she replaced former Obama chief of staff Rahm Emanuel as mayor of the nation’s third-largest city, promising to do the job better. SENT: 930 words, photos. With CHICAGO-MAYOR-REPORTERS — Chicago mayor: Reporters of color get 2-year mark interviews (sent).

DEMENTIA ARREST-COLORADO — A police officer who pushed a 73-year-old Colorado woman with dementia to the ground after she left a store without paying for items worth about $14 is facing charges of using excessive force, while a second officer is accused of failing to stop or report his actions, prosecutors say. SENT: 900 words, photo.

SEXUAL-MISCONDUCT-DANNY-MASTERSON — A woman testified Friday that she was five years into a relationship with actor Danny Masterson when she awoke to find he had begun having sex with her as she slept, as happened often. SENT: 780 words, photos.

ALASKA-BEAR-MAULING — An Alaska man survived 10 seconds of terror after a chance meeting with a large brown bear in a remote part of Alaska. Allen Minish was mauled during the brief encounter and is now recuperating at an Anchorage hospital. The bear crushed his right jaw and left him with puncture wounds and lacerations. SENT: 830 words, photo.

IDAHO-SCHOOL SHOOTING-TEACHER — When a student opened fire at an Idaho middle school, teacher Krista Gneiting calmly disarmed the sixth-grader, then hugged and consoled the girl until police arrived. SENT: 670 words, photos.

PACIFIC-HURRICANE-FORECAST — The central Pacific basin including Hawaii can expect between two and five tropical depressions, tropical storms or hurricanes this year, federal forecasters say. SENT: SENT: 410 words, photo.

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INTERNATIONAL

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GUATAMALA-US-JUSTICE — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris has met with a group of leading voices on Guatemala’s troubled justice system, sending yet another signal to Central American governments that the U.S. government is interested in addressing the region’s corruption. SENT: 590 words, photos.

FRANCE-SARKOZY-TRIAL — Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy goes on trial on Thursday on charges that his unsuccessful 2012 reelection bid was illegally financed, a scandal that has thrown his conservative party into turmoil. SENT: 450 words, photos.

VENEZUELA-MERCENARY RAID — A judge in Colombia has sentenced three Venezuelan men to six years in prison for helping organize an ill-conceived plot to remove President Nicolás Maduro involving former American Green Berets. SENT: 670 words, photo.

MEXICO-CORRUPTION — A Mexican judge has issued an arrest order for the governor of the northern border state of Tamaulipas on organized crime and money laundering charges, a federal official says. SENT: 220 words.

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BUSINESS/ECONOMY

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FORD-ELECTRIC-F-150-PICKUP — On the outside, the electric version of Ford’s F-150 pickup looks much like its wildly popular gas-powered version. Yet the resemblance is deceiving. With its new battery-powered truck, Ford is making a costly bet that buyers will embrace a vehicle that would help transform how the world drives. By Auto Writer Tom Krisher. SENT: 1,220 words, photos, video.

NEW ZEALAND-BUDGET — New Zealand plans to rebuild its Antarctic base and spend billions more on welfare payments as part of a spending program aimed at lifting the economy out of a coronavirus slump. SENT: 530 words, photos.

FINANCIAL-MARKETS — Shares were mixed in Asia on as Japan reported strong trade data signaling a recovery in demand from the pandemic. Stocks rose in Tokyo and Sydney but fell in Hong Kong and Shanghai. The price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies steadied. By Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach. SENT: 630 words, photos.

CYBERSECURITY-SOLARWINDS — The hackers who carried out the massive SolarWinds intrusion were in the software company’s system as early as January 2019, months earlier than previously known, the company’s top official say. SENT: 270 words, photo.

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HEALTH/SCIENCE

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VACCINE-HPV-CANCERS — Screening and the HPV vaccine have led to drops in cervical cancers over the last two decades in the U.S., a study finds. By Medical Writer Carla K. Johnson. SENT: 700 words, photo.

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ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT

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BIG-SCREEN-IS-BACK — Arnold Schwarzenegger chanted with enthusiasm, “We are back! We are back!” before he spoke about the importance of resurrecting the theatrical experience for moviegoers. The actor and former California governor was joined by filmmakers and major Hollywood studio executives as part of the “Big Screen is Back” initiative. Other speakers included J.J. Abrams, Maggie Q, Sam Richardson, Janicza Bravo and David Bruckner. By Entertainment Writer Jonathan Landrum Jr. SENT: 390 words, photos.

VOTING COMPANY LAWSUIT-FOX NEWS — Fox News files a motion to dismiss a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems over claims about the 2020 presidential election, arguing its coverage is protected by the First Amendment. SENT: 540 words, photo.

FILM-REVIEW-DREAM-HORSE — The based-on-a-true-story “Dream Horse,” about a Welsh bartender who turns unlikely race horse breeder, is a feel-good movie that’s a little too heavy on the “feel-good” to really do the trick. By Film Writer Jake Coyle. SENT: 650 words, photos.

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SPORTS

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WARRIORS-LAKERS — LeBron James persevered through an injured ankle, a big first-half deficit and being poked in the eye late in the fourth quarter to add another highlight to his impressive resume. James made a long, go-ahead 3-pointer with 58.2 seconds remaining, rallying the Los Angeles Lakers to a 103-100 victory over the Golden State Warriors in a Western Conference play-in tournament game. By Sports Writer Joe Reedy. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.

YANKEES-RANGERS — Corey Kluber stopped for a moment before his first pitch of the ninth inning. Kluber then finished the major leagues’ sixth no-hitter this season and second in two nights, leading the New York Yankees over the Texas Rangers 2-0 on Wednesday. By Baseball Writer Stephen Hawkins. SENT: 1,170 words, photos.

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HOW TO REACH US

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