AP News Digest 3:05 a.m.

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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ONLY ON AP

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TEST-SCORES-DISTRICT-DATA — The COVID-19 pandemic devastated poor children’s well-being, not just by closing their schools, but also by taking away their parents’ jobs, sickening their families and teachers and adding chaos and fear to their daily lives. The scale of the disruption to American kids’ education is evident in a district-by-district analysis of test scores shared exclusively with The Associated Press. The data provide the most comprehensive look yet at how much schoolchildren have fallen behind academically. By Bianca Vazquez Toness and Sharon Lurye. SENT: 1,160 words, photos.

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TOP STORIES

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MUSK-TWITTER — Elon Musk has taken control of Twitter and ousted the CEO, chief financial officer and the company’s top lawyer, two people familiar with the deal say. The people wouldn’t say if all the paperwork for the deal, originally valued at $44 billion, had been signed or if the deal has closed. But they said Musk is in charge of the social media platform and has fired CEO Parag Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal and Chief Legal Counsel Vijaya Gadde. Neither person wanted to be identified because of the sensitive nature of the deal. By Tom Krisher and Matt O’Brien. SENT: 1,110 words, photos. With MUSK-TWITTER-TIMELINE – If the case has your head spinning, here’s a quick guide to the major events in the saga featuring the billionaire Tesla CEO and the social platform (sent).

RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR — Ukrainian forces attacked Russia’s hold on the southern city of Kherson on Thursday while fighting intensified in the country’s east. The battles came amid reports that Moscow-appointed authorities in the city have abandoned it, joining tens of thousands of residents who fled to other Russia-held areas. By Andrew Meldrum. SENT: 1,100 words, photos.

ELECTION 2022-OBAMA — Barack Obama is trying to do something he couldn’t during two terms as president: help Democrats succeed in national midterm elections when they already hold the White House. Of course, he’s more popular now than he was back then. By Bill Barrow. SENT: 1,110 words, photo.

KOREAS-TENSIONS — North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles toward the sea in its first ballistic weapons launches in two weeks, as the U.S. military warned the North that the use of nuclear weapons “will result in the end of that regime.” By Hyung-Jin Kim and Kim Tong-Hyung. SENT: 670 words, photo.

SUPERSTORM-SANDY-INFRASTRUCTURE — After Superstorm Sandy struck the northeast U.S. in 2012, an unprecedented effort began to fortify the densely populated coastline against the next big storm. Then, last year, remnants of Hurricane Ida blew Ian, and flash floods killed at least 58 people. The two deadly storms, nearly a decade apart, left public officials and residents alike contemplating what more needs to be done. Today, 10 years after Sandy and with billions of dollars already spent, the most ambitious and comprehensive protections are years away from completion, with some still in early stages or even unfunded. Experts say Ida showed the area was not ready for another storm — and they worry about what will happen when the next one hits. By Wayne Parry. SENT: 1,500 words, photos.

IRAN-PROTESTS-CAMPUS-UPRISING — As demonstrations erupt across Iran, the country’s elite technical university has emerged as an unexpected hub for protest. The Sharif University of Technology has long been a magnet for the nation’s brightest minds. It has a record of elevating its students to the highest reaches of society. The daily protests at Sharif University and the violent crackdown on students there have fueled Iran’s biggest antigovernment movement in over a decade. Over the last few weeks, university campuses have become a hotbed of opposition after years of dormancy. They are playing an important role in nationwide protests that were first sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of the country’s morality police. By Isabel Debre. SENT: 1,150 words, photos.

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TRENDING

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OKLAHOMA-HOUSE-FIRE-8-DEAD — Eight people were found dead Thursday in a burning Tulsa-area house in what was being investigated as multiple homicides, police said. SENT: 310 words, photos.

MIAMI-BUILDING-EVACUATIED — Residents of a Miami Beach building on the same street where a condominium collapse killed nearly 100 people were forced to evacuate on Thursday evening after officials determined the structure was unsafe and gave orders to leave. SENT: 260 words, photos.

HAWAII-VOLCANO – Hawaii officials are warning residents of the Big Island that the world’s largest active volcano, Mauna Loa, is sending signals that it may erupt. By Audrey McAvoy. SENT: 300

INAUGURAL-PROBE-TRIAL – A trusted friend of Donald Trump who’s facing federal foreign influence charges testified Thursday that “dozens” of people asked him for help in getting pardons from the former president. By Tom Hays. SENT: 390 words, photos.

MEXICO-DOG-HEAD — Residents of a town in north-central Mexico were stunned to see a dog running down the street with a human head in its mouth. Officials in the violence-plagued state of Zacatecas confirmed the incident and said police eventually managed to wrest the head away from the dog. SENT: 180 words, photos.

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MORE 0N RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR

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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-UN-BIOLOGICAL LABS — The U.S. and its Western allies on Thursday dismissed Russia’s claims that banned biological weapons activities are taking place in Ukraine with American support, calling the allegation disinformation and fabrications. SENT: 860 words.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE-UN-NUCLEAR-AGENCY — The U.N. nuclear chief said Thursday he is sending inspectors to two locations in Ukraine where Russia alleged that activities related to the possible production of “dirty bombs” was taking place and expects them to reach a conclusion “in days — very fast.” SENT: 750 words, photo.

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2022 ELECTIONS

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ELECTION 2022-OHIO — A surprising dynamic is taking shape in Ohio, where Republicans are hoping to ride a wave of national discontent with Democrats to take control of the Senate. Less than two weeks before Election Day, the race between Republican JD Vance and Democrat Tim Ryan is more competitive than expected. By Jill Colvin. SENT: 1,450 words, photos.

ELECTION 2022-OREGON-SANDERS TOUR — Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders kicked off a multi-state tour in Oregon on Thursday by talking about abortion, but honed in on a topic some Democratic candidates have largely avoided on the campaign trail: The economy. SENT: 570 words, photos.

ELECTION 2022-FLORIDA CONSTITUTION COMMISSION — Florida voters are deciding whether to get rid of a commission that meets every 20 years to recommend changes to the state constitution, the only such panel among the U.S. states that refers amendments directly to a statewide ballot. SENT: 500 words, photo.

ELECTION-2022-NEVADA-HAND-COUNT — An unprecedented hand-count of mail-in ballots in a rural Nevada county is on hold and may not resume after the Nevada Supreme Court said in an after-hours ruling the current process is illegal and the Republican secretary of state directed the county clerk to “cease immediately.” SENT: 1,080 words, photos.

ELECTION-2022-GEORGIA-TURNOUT – Georgia’s top candidates fanned out Thursday to parts of the state that already embrace them, trying to dig up every bit of support they can amid a big turnout in early voting. By Jeff Amy and Russ Bynum. SENT: 910 words, photos.

Follow this link for our complete Election 2022 coverage.

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WASHINGTON

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GEORGIA-ELECTION-INVESTIGATION — The Georgia prosecutor investigating possible illegal election interference in the 2020 election says that the Supreme Court should not stand in the way of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham’s testimony to a grand jury. SENT: 220 words, photos.

BIDEN-CLIMATE TREATY – President Joe Biden signed an international agreement that compels the United States and other countries to limit use of hydrofluorocarbons, highly potent greenhouse gases commonly used in refrigeration and air conditioning that are far more powerful than carbon dioxide. By Matthew Daly. SENT: 470 words, photos.

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NATIONAL

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SEXUAL MISCONDUCT-HARVEY WEINSTEIN — A dancer in a film produced by Harvey Weinstein has testified that she was “freaked out” after meeting the movie mogul on the Puerto Rican set but the presence and reassurance of his assistant convinced her it was OK to go with him to his hotel, where she was later sexually assaulted. SENT: 690 words, photos.

STEINBECK-DEMOCRACY — Debates over the future of democracy aren’t new. Decades ago, communists and suspected communists were being blacklisted. As a resident in Paris at the time, John Steinbeck found himself asked often about the headlines from his native country and whether its form of government was endangered. His response was a column for a French publication that has rarely been seen since, but now appears in the current issue of the literary quarterly The Strand Magazine. “All democracies have it,” he wrote of the hysteria of McCarthyism. “It cannot be wiped out because, by destroying it, democracy would destroy itself.” SENT: 610 words, photos.

REVOLUTIONARY WAR PRISON — Researchers say they solved a decades-old riddle this week by finding remnants of the stockade and therefore the site of a prison camp in York, Pennsylvania, that housed British soldiers for nearly two years during the American Revolutionary War. SENT: 520 words, photos.

ABORTION-ARIZONA — Arizona’s attorney general has agreed not to enforce a near total ban on abortions at least until next year, a move that Planned Parenthood Arizona credited with allowing the group to restart abortion care across the state. SENT: 590 words, photos.

SCHOOL-SHOOTING-ST. LOUIS — The 19-year-old gunman who forced his way into a St. Louis school and killed two people purchased the AR-15-style rifle from a private seller after an FBI background check stopped him from buying a weapon from a licensed dealer, police say. SENT: 590 words, photos.

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INTERNATIONAL

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COP27-INDIA-EXPECTATIONS — As countries gathered in Scotland were crystallizing their pledges at last year’s United Nations climate conference, India used its might to intervene. Along with China, India took issue with the draft deal’s suggestion to “phase out” coal, preferring the wording, “phase down.” By Sibi Arasu. SENT: 1,130 words, photos.

UNITED NATIONS-WESTERN SAHARA — The U.N. Security Council called for a revival of U.N-led negotiations on the disputed Western Sahara in a resolution adopted Thursday that expressed “deep concern” at the breakdown of the 1991 cease-fire between Morocco and the pro-independence Polisario Front whose decades-old dispute shows no sign of ending. The vote was 13-0 with Russia and Kenya abstaining. SENT: 760 words, photo.

AUSTRALIA-SYRIA — The first group of Australian women and children held in a Syrian camp since the Islamic State group fell in 2019 was bound for Sydney despite government opponents arguing they pose an unacceptable extremist threat, a media organization reports. SENT: 470 words, photo.

INDIA-META CONTROVERSY — An official from India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party said he would file civil and criminal charges against an independent local news website after it reported in a now-retracted story that Meta, the U.S.-based social media giant, granted him extraordinary powers to censor Instagram posts. SENT: 460 words.

NEW ZEALAND-ANTARTICA — New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern appeared awestruck to be standing in the Antarctic hut of explorer Ernest Shackleton. Ardern this week is making a rare visit by a world leader to Antarctica, to see firsthand the research taking place on global warming and to mark the 65th anniversary of New Zealand’s Scott Base, which will be demolished in a few years to make way for a rebuild. SENT: 450 words, photos.

NICARAGUA-US-SANCTIONS — Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said Thursday that new sanctions imposed on his government by the United States this week would only serve to drive more migrants to the U.S. border. SENT; 330 words, photos.

ITALY-STABBINGS – A man grabbed a knife from a supermarket shelf Thursday and stabbed five people, killing one and wounding four others, including Spanish soccer player Pablo Mari, Italian authorities said. SENT: 250 words, photos.

MEXICO-DAY-OF THE DEAD – Mexican artisans are struggling to preserve the traditional manufacture of paper cut-out decorations long used in altars for the Day of the Dead. By Fernanda Pesce. SENT: 630 words, photos.

CLIMATE-CARS — The European Parliament and EU member countries have reached a deal to ban the sale of new gasoline and diesel cars and vans by 2035. SENT: 410 words.

ASIA-STORM — At least 13 people died and five others were missing in flash floods and landslides set off by torrential rains that swamped a southern Philippine province overnight, officials say. SENT: 310 words.

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HEALTH & SCIENCE

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VIRUS-OUTBREAK-CHINA — China’s largest city of Shanghai is ordering mass testing on all 1.3 million residents of its downtown Yangpu district and confining them to their homes at least until results are known. SENT: 800 words, photos.

SCI--MARS-METEOR STRIKES — Two NASA spacecraft at Mars have recorded the biggest meteor strikes and impact craters yet. Scientists reported that last year’s barrages sent seismic surface waves rippling thousands of miles across Mars, the first ever detected near the surface of another planet. SENT: 600 words, photo.

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BUSINESS/ TECHNOLOGY

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FINANCIAL-MARKETS — Shares were mostly lower in Asia after a mixed session on Wall Street, where tech sector losses offset gains in other parts of the market. Tokyo’s benchmark slipped as the government was preparing about a massive stimulus spending package to help the world’s No. 3 economy cope with inflation. As expected, the Bank of Japan wrapped up a policy meeting by keeping its ultra-lax monetary policy unchanged even as it forecast higher inflation. SENT: 710 words, photos.

JAPAN-ECONOMY — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government was to approve on Friday a hefty economic package that will include government funding of about 29 trillion yen ($200 billion) to soften the burden of costs from rising utility rates and food prices. SENT: 500 words, photo.

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SPORTS

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FBN--RAVENS-BUCCANEERS — Lamar Jackson threw for 238 yards and two second-half touchdowns to lead the Baltimore Ravens to a 27-22 comeback victory over Tom Brady and the struggling Tampa Bay Buccaneers. By Fred Goodall. SENT: 735 words, photos. With TAMPA, Fla. — FBN--RAVENS-JACKSON — Jackson’s strong 2nd half helps Ravens top Bucs. SENT: 375 words, photos.

BBO--WORLD SERIES PREVIEW — Justin Verlander remains in search of his first World Series win after going 0-6 with a 5.68 ERA in seven Series starts. The 39-year-old right-hander starts for the Houston Astros on Friday night. Aaron Nola takes the mound for the Philadelphia Phillies, the first third-place team to reach a World Series. By Baseball Writer Ronald Blum. SENT: 940 words, photos.

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HOW TO REACH US

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