AP News Digest 3:10 a.m.
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TOP STORIES
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SOUTH-KOREA-US-LEAKED-DOCUMENT — Leaked U.S. intelligence documents suggesting Washington spied on South Korea have put the country’s president in a delicate situation ahead of a state visit to the U.S., the first such trip by a South Korean leader in 12 years. By Hyung-Jin Kim and Kim Tong-Hyung. SENT: 1,000 words, photos. With: LEAKED DOCUMENTS-UKRAINE WAR (sent).
ABORTION-PILL — A federal appeals court has preserved access to an abortion drug for now but under tighter rules that would allow the drug only to be dispensed up to seven weeks, not 10, and not by mail. By Paul J. Weber and Jessica Gresko. SENT: 460 words, photo.
TENNESSEE LAWMAKERS EXPULSION — The second of two Black Democrats expelled from the Republican-led Tennessee House will follow his colleague in a return to work at the Capitol, a week after their banishments for a gun control protest on the House floor that propelled them into the national spotlight. By Jonathan Mattise. SENT: 440 words, photos.
LOUISVILLE SHOOTING — Frantic calls from witnesses reporting a mass shooting at a Louisville bank were released by police, including one from a woman who was on a virtual meeting and saw the shooter, as well as one from the man’s mother, who told a 911 operator that her son “currently has a gun and is heading toward” the bank. The calls were released Wednesday, hours before an interfaith vigil was held in downtown Louisville to remember victims. By Dylan Lovan, Rebecca Reynolds and John Raby. SENT: 1,000 words, photos, video.
KOREAS-TENSIONS — North Korea has conducted its first intercontinental ballistic missile launch in a month, possibly testing a new type of more mobile, harder-to-detect weapons system, its neighbors said, in an extension of the North’s provocative run of missile tests. By Hyung-Jin Kim and Kim Tong-Hyung. SENT: 1,040 words, photos, audio.
HOLY LAND-THREATENED CHRISTIANS — Since the rise of Israel’s most right-wing government in history, church leaders say the 2,000-year-old Christian community in the Holy Land has come under increasing attack, with harassment of clergy and vandalism of religious properties on the rise. The head of the Roman Catholic Church in the region tells The Associated Press that he fears Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ultranationalist coalition has empowered extremists. By Isabel Debre. SENT: 1,240 words, photos.
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RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR — Ukraine launched an investigation into a gruesome video circulating on social media that purportedly shows the beheading of a Ukrainian soldier. The Kremlin called the footage “horrible” but said it needed to be verified. SENT: 820 words, photo.
RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR-ART CRACKDOWN — The father of a a Russian girl sent to an orphanage after drawing an antiwar sketch at school has been extradited from Belarus to Russia, a human rights group reported Wednesday. He faces two years in prison. SENT: 200 words, photo.
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MORE NEWS
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PAKISTAN-FIRE — Four firefighters died and nearly a dozen others were injured after a massive fire broke out in a garment factory in the southern Pakistan port city of Karachi, rescue officials and police say. SENT: 220 words, photos.
ALASKA-DOG-SEA ICE JOURNEY — A 1-year-old Australian shepherd took an epic trek across 150 miles (241 kilometers) of frozen Bering Sea ice that included being bitten by a seal or polar bear before he was safely returned to his home in Alaska. SENT: 300 words. Photos, video.
SEXUAL MISCONDUCT-HARVEY WEINSTEIN — Disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has returned to the New York prison system after spending nearly two years in California, where he was tried and convicted of raping an Italian actor and model. SENT: 250 words, photos.
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WASHINGTON/POLITICS
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BIDEN-INFRASTRUCTURE — The Biden administration is closing out a three-week push to highlight the benefits of infrastructure investments in local communities by awarding nearly $300 million to help repair or replace more than a dozen bridges across the country. By White House Correspondent Zeke Miller. SENT: 450 words, photos.
TRUMP-LEGAL TROUBLES — Former President Donald Trump is expected to visit the offices of New York’s attorney general for his second deposition in a legal battle over his company’s business practices. SENT: 310 words, photo.
MEDIA-FOX NEWS-TRUMP — For several months, Fox News treated Donald Trump like yesterday’s news. But the former president has come roaring back to the channel, as most recently seen by Tucker Carlson’s hour-long friendly interview on Tuesday. By Media Writer David Bauder. SENT: 700 words, photos.
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NATIONAL
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FLORIDA-FLOODING — Nearly a foot of rain fell in a matter of hours in Fort Lauderdale – causing widespread flooding, the closure of the city’s airport and the suspension of high-speed commuter rail service for the Broward County region. SENT: 500 words, photos.
PITTSBURGH SYNAGOGUE SHOOTING — The man charged in the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history tried for years to avoid a federal jury trial, which would decide whether to convict him of shooting to death 11 people in a Pittsburgh synagogue. Ultimately those efforts failed, and jury selection is less than two weeks away. SENT: 910 words, photos.
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INTERNATIONAL
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WORLD-BANK-NOMINEE-CLIMATE-CRED — The incoming president of the World Bank was born in India and forged his early business success there, a fact supporters say gives Ajay Banga valuable insight into the challenges faced by the developing countries the bank is supposed to help. SENT: 890 words, photo.
FRANCE-PENSION-CONSTITUTIONAL-COUNCIL — French unions are staging new nationwide protests on the eve of an expected ruling by a top constitutional body that they hope will derail President Emmanuel Macron’s unpopular pension reform plan. SENT: 660 words, photos.
CHINA-BRAZIL — Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was in the Chinese financial hub of Shanghai on Thursday as he looks to boost ties with the South American giant’s biggest trade partner and win political support for attempts to mediate the conflict in Ukraine. SENT: 620 words, photos.
AUSTRALIA-CYCLONE — A severe tropical cyclone lashed the northwest Australian coast with strengthening winds and increasing rain as authorities warned the population to prepare for destructive gusts of up to 170 mph. SENT: 580 words, photo.
SYRIA-SAUDI-ARABIA — Syria and Saudi Arabia are moving toward reopening embassies and resuming flights between the two countries for the first time in more than a decade, the countries have said in a joint statement. SENT: 450 words, photos.
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BUSINESS/TECH —————————————
FINANCIAL MARKETS — Asian stock markets have declined after the Federal Reserve said its economists expect a “mild recession” this year. Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Sydney retreated. Tokyo advanced. Oil prices fell. SENT: 530 words, photos.
CHINA-TRADE — China’s exports have rebounded unexpectedly to growth in March despite a decline in U.S. and European demand following interest rate hikes to cool inflation. SENT: 510 words, photos.
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SPORTS
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BKN--BULLS-RAPTORS — Zach LaVine scored 39 points, DeMar DeRozan had 23 against his former team and the Chicago Bulls overcame a 19-point deficit to beat the Toronto Raptors 109-105 in a play-in tournament game Wednesday night. Nikola Vucevic had 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Bulls, who trailed 66-47 in the third quarter before LaVine carried them back. He scored 17 points in the third as Chicago cut the gap to nine, then added 13 more in the fourth to help the Bulls advance. SENT: 650 words, photos.
BKN--THUNDER-PELICANS — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander highlighted his 32-point night with a go-ahead baseline jumper and four clutch free throws in the final 29 seconds, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the New Orleans Pelicans 123-118 on Wednesday night to remain alive in the Western Conference play-in tournament. By Brett Martel. SENT: 700 words, photos.
BBA--RED SOX-RAYS — The Tampa Bay Rays won their 12th straight game to start the season, one short of the major league record, as Randy Arozarena hit a three-run homer in a 9-7 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday night. The 1987 Milwaukee Brewers and 1982 Atlanta Braves both opened 13-0, tying for the best mark in big league history. Tampa Bay’s 12-game winning streak matches the team record set in June 2004.. SENT: 600 words, photos.
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HOW TO REACH US
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