AP News Digest 3:20 a.m.
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TOP STORIES
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AFGHANISTAN-INTELLIGENCE LOSSES — The two-decade war in Afghanistan has given U.S. spies a perch for keeping tabs on terrorist groups that might once again use the beleaguered nation to plan attacks against the U.S. homeland. But that will end soon with the withdrawal of U.S. troops, leaving intelligence agencies scrambling. By NOMAAN MERCHANT. SENT: 1,000 words, photos. With UNITED STATES-AFGHANISTAN — The U.S. military vacates its biggest airfield in Afghanistan. SENT: 940 words, photos.
BUILDING-COLAPSE-THEY-BARELY-ESCAPED — When half of a Florida apartment building collapsed, the other half of the tower was left standing. While 126 residents, mostly from the oceanside units, are among the missing nine days later, many others barely escaped. With the elevator collapsed, they descended the cracked stairwell that had separated from the wall, along the way helping neighbors they met for the first time and others they’d known for years. While their escapes felt agonizingly long, it all unfolded in mere minutes. At least 22 people have died. By Kelli Kennedy. SENT: 1,820 words, photos. An Abridged version is also available.
BUILDING COLLAPSE-MIAMI — Residents of a Miami-area high-rise loaded clothes and valuables into suitcases, laundry baskets and wagons and wheeled them to waiting cars after they were forced to evacuate the building when it was found to be unsafe in a review prompted by the deadly collapse of a building just a few miles away. By Rebecca Santana. SENT: 840 words, photos.
Find more on the building collapse in the AP Newsroom hub.
VIRUS OUTBREAK — Countries across Europe are scrambling to accelerate coronavirus vaccinations and outpace the spread of the more infectious delta variant, in a high-stakes race to prevent hospital wards from filling up again with patients fighting for their lives. By Barry Hatton. SENT: 950 words, photos. With VIRUS-OUTBREAK-THE-LATEST.
JILL BIDEN — Within 36 hours, Jill Biden went enjoying a baseball game in Houston to joining the president in Florida to comfort families affected by the condominium building collapse in Surfside. The breadth of her travel illustrates the range of missions and emotions associated with the first lady. By Darlene Superville. SENT: 1,060 words, photos.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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WATER PISTOL ROBBERY-ARKANSAS — Man serving life for water pistol robbery gets clemency nod. SENT: 230 words.
PREDATOR-HOST-ARREST — Ex-‘Predator’ host turns himself in, resolves video issue. SENT: 250 words, photo.
MEXICO-LIE OF THE WEEK — Press groups slam Mexican leader’s ‘lie of the week’ contest. SENT: 390 words, photo.
CAPITOL BREACH-FENCE — AP sources: Remaining fence around US Capitol to be removed SENT: 420 words, photo.
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MORE ON VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS-OUTBREAK-INDONESIA — After a slow vaccination rollout, Indonesia is now racing to inoculate as many people as possible as it battles an explosion of cases that have strained hospitals. On Saturday, the strictest measures this year enter force, including work from home, the closure of places of worship and malls, and restaurants allowed delivery only. SENT: 910 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-VENEZUELA — Some Venezuelans got a COVID-19 shot this week thanks to a donation of Cuban-developed vaccines, bringing relief to some residents desperate to protect themselves while simultaneously deepening the mystery around the country’s donation-dependent vaccination campaign. SENT: 680 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-THAILAND — Health authorities in Thailand reported over 6,200 new COVID-19 cases, setting a record for a third straight day, as concerns mounted over shortages of treatment facilities and vaccine supplies. SENT: 520 words, photos.
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WASHINGTON/POLITICS
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BIDEN-LGBTQ ENVOY — Jessica Stern will soon become the State Department’s special diplomatic envoy for LGBTQ rights. As she assesses the challenges that lie ahead, Stern sees a mix of promising developments and worrisome news almost everywhere she looks. By David Crary. SENT: 510 words, photo.
BIDEN-TEACHERS-UNION — Speaking to the nation’s largest teachers union, President Joe Biden said Friday that the pandemic has given America’s parents the “ultimate education” on the challenges of the teaching profession. But even more, he said, the last year has proved that teachers across the U.S. deserve higher pay. SENT: 580 words, photos.
ELECTION-2020-ARIZONA-TRUMP — Newly released records show the top Republicans in Arizona’s largest county dodged calls from Donald Trump and his allies in the aftermath of the 2020 election, as the then-president sought to prevent the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in key battleground states. SENT: 640 words.
MIGRANT-CHILDREN-SHELTER — Biden administration officials and lawmakers have toured an emergency shelter that the government opened to house children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border alone, with the head of the agency caring for migrant kids calling the California facility a model among its large-scale sites, some of which have plagued by complaints. SENT: 810 words, photos.
ELECTION-2021-MANHATTAN-DISTRICT-ATTORNEY — Alvin Bragg, a former top deputy to New York’s attorney general, was poised to become Manhattan’s first Black district attorney and to take over the investigation of former President Donald Trump after his closest opponent conceded in the the Democratic primary. SENT: 860 words, photo.
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NATIONAL
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CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES — Firefighters were making progress against Northern California forest fires that burned several homes and forced thousands to flee communities even as authorities prepared for a hot, crowded Fourth of July weekend that could bring the threat of new blazes. SENT: 430 words, photos, video.
NEWSPAPER-SHOOTING TRIAL — The man who killed five people at a Maryland newspaper is autistic and has “persecutory, delusional beliefs,” a trial defense expert testified — but a prosecutor criticized the doctor’s findings, saying a report featured an error, omitted details and was overly dependent on what the gunman told him. SENT: 560 words, photo.
BOY-SCOUTS-BANKRUPTCY — An $850 million agreement by the Boy Scouts of America to compensate sex-abuse victims prompted outrage Friday from some survivors and their advocates, while others were encouraged and saw it as the best outcome that could be achieved under the circumstances. SENT: 940 words, photos.
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INTERNATIONAL
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FRANCE-FAR-RIGHT-WOES — French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is facing stinging criticism for making her party too mainstream, dulling its extremist edge, and ignoring grassroots members, with voices from inside and outside warning this could cost her votes in next year’s presidential race. SENT: 800 words, photos.
UNITED-NATIONS-ETHIOPIA — The United Nations said Friday that more than 400,000 people in Ethiopia’s crisis-wracked Tigray region are now facing the worst global famine in decades and 1.8 million are on the brink, and warned that despite the government’s unilateral cease-fire there is serious potential for fighting in western Tigray. SENT: 960 words, photos.
MEXICO-MIGRANT-CAMP — Crowding and unsanitary conditions are getting worse at informal camps set up in northern Mexico by asylum seekers waiting to make asylum claims in the United States. SENT: 500 words, photos.
JAPAN-MUDSLIDE — A powerful mudslide carrying a deluge of black water and debris crashed into rows of houses in a town west of Tokyo following heavy rains on Saturday, leaving at least 19 people missing, officials says. SENT: 250 words, photos.
AFGHANISTAN-20-YEARS-PHOTO-GALLERY — AP PHOTOS: US troops on front lines of America’s longest war. SENT: 230 words, photos.
RUSSIA-CENTRAL-AFRICAN-REPUBLIC — The Russian Foreign Ministry has reaffirmed a strong denial of U.N. experts’ claims that Russian military instructors were involved in killing civilians and looting in the Central African Republic. SENT: 540 words.
CANADA-INDIGENOUS-SCHOOL-GRAVES — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has denounced the burning and vandalism of Catholic churches that has followed discovery of unmarked graves and former schools for Indigenous children. SENT: 620 words, photo.
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BUSINESS/ECONOMY
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DATA-SERVICES-CYBERATTACK — A ransomware attack paralyzed the networks of at least 200 U.S. companies, according to a cybersecurity researcher whose company was responding to the incident. SENT: 750 words, photos.
FINANCIAL-MARKETS — Stocks are again closing higher on Wall Street, with the S&P 500 posting its seventh straight gain and seventh consecutive all-time high. SENT: 810 words, photos.
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SPORTS
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HKN--STANLEY CUP — Tyler Johnson and the quick-strike Tampa Bay Lightning are one win from defending their title following a 6-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final. The Lightning caught the Canadiens flat-footed by scoring twice in the opening minutes of each of the first two periods. By Hockey Writer John Wawrow. SENT: 900 words, photos. With HKN--Stanley Cup-Analysis (sent) and Notebook (sent).
BBN--DODGERS-BAUER — Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer is placed on administrative leave by MLB following an assault allegation. MLB says it is investigating along with police in Pasadena, California. A woman has obtained a protection order against the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner. An agent for Bauer disputes the allegation. SENT: 650 words, photos.
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HOW TO REACH US
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At the Nerve Center, Vincent K. Willis 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(at)ap.org or call 844-777-2006.