AP News Digest 5:40 a.m.
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TOP STORIES
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VIRUS-OUTBREAK — Italy and France are introducing Europe’s toughest vaccine pass regimes for normal social activities like dining indoors at restaurants, visiting museums and attending sporting events. The tactic has boosted vaccination rates in both countries. But there are pockets of resistance by those who call it a violation of their civil liberties or who are concerned about vaccine safety. By Colleen Barry. SENT: 970 words, photos.
CONGRESS-INFRASTRUCTURE - Unable to produce the final text of a nearly $1 trillion infrastructure bill, the Senate wrapped up a rare Saturday session making little visible progress on the legislative package, but Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed the work would get done. The Senate planned to reconvene Sunday. By Kevin Freking and Lisa Mascaro. SENT: 900 words, photos.
CONGRESS-EVICTION MORATIUM - Anger and frustration mounted in Congress as a nationwide eviction moratorium expired at midnight Saturday — one Democratic lawmaker even camping outside the Capitol in protest as millions of Americans faced being forced from their homes. By Lisa Mascaro, Josh Boak and Kevin Freking. SENT: 800 words, photos.
BURKINA FASO-CHILD-SOLDIERS — Awoken by gunshots in the middle of the night, Fatima Amadou was shocked by what she saw among the attackers: children. With guns slung over their small frames, they surrounded her home in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region in June. Amadou and her family survived the attack that left about 160 people dead. It was the deadliest such assault since the once-peaceful West African nation was overrun by fighters linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State about five years ago. As such violence increases, so too does the recruitment of child soldiers. By Sam Mednick. SENT: 920 words, photos.
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MORE ON THE OLYMPICS
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OLY-SWM-SWIMMING — Caeleb Dressel capped one of the greatest performances in Olympic history with his fourth and fifth gold medals of the Tokyo Games. Dressel won the 50-meter freestyle for his third individual title. Then, he returned for the final race at the pool, leading the Americans to a win in the 4x100 medley relay. The 24-year-old becomes only the fifth swimmer to win as many five golds at one Olympics. Speaking of records, Australia’s Emma McKeon finished off her own remarkable medal haul. She won two more golds and became only the second woman in any sport to capture seven medals. By Sports Writer Paul Newberry. SENT: 1,190 words, photos.
OLY-SWIMMING-INCLUSIVITY — Alice Dearing is the first Black female swimmer to make Britain’s Olympic team, but the ambassador for a bathing cap for natural hair won’t be able to use the covering in competition. FINA banned use of the Soul Cap in the Tokyo Games in a decision many decried as yet another example of the lack of diversity in swimming. FINA has said it will take another look at the cap this fall. Black swimmers are hopeful it’s a step toward inclusivity for a sport dominated by white athletes. SENT: 1,290 words, photos.
OLY-GYM-BILES-OUT — Simone Biles will not defend her Olympic gold medal on floor exercise. USA Gymnastics announced that the six-time Olympic medalist has opted not to compete on floor, where she won gold in Rio de Janeiro and placed second in qualifying last week. SENT 210 words, photo.
OLY-SKB--SKATEBOARDING-AFRICAN WHEELS — The age-range of competitors in skateboarding’s Olympic debut at the Tokyo Games is remarkably broad and testifies to the sport’s inclusivity. In the men’s park event this week, 46-year-olds Dallas Oberholzer and Rune Glifberg are flying the flag for Generation X against Gens Y and Z. They will go wheel-to-wheel with skaters less than half their age. And the youngest competitor in the women’s park event will be just 12. By John Leicester. SENT: 820 words, photos.
OLY-ATH-EXPLAINER-FAST-TRACK — The Jamaican sprinter and her Olympic-record time captured everyone’s attention. What’s under foot, though, might have been a factor when Elaine Thompson-Herah broke a 33-year-old Olympic record in the 100 meters. It’s shaping up as a fast track surface at Olympic Stadium. By Sports Writer Pat Graham. SENT: 580 words, photos.
OLY-GLIMPES-INTO-THE-AIR — You know those epic cutaways in movies and on TV that show long shots of Superman flying to the rescue, or taking off immediately after saving the day? That’s what Associated Press photographer Ashley Landis’ photos of trampoline events at the Tokyo Olympics evoke. SENT: 240 words, photos.
OLY--ATH-TRACK AND FIELD — Elaine Thompson-Herah breaks Florence Griffith Joyner’s 33-year-old Olympic record in the women’s 100 meters, pointing at the scoreboard before finishing in 10.61 seconds. She successfully defends her Rio title and leads a Jamaican medal sweep. How much faster might she have been without the showboating? By National Writer Eddie Pells. SENT: 1,200 words, photos.
OLY-HAIR-PHOTO-GALLERY — Whether a lock for the podium or a fringe competitor, Olympians in all disciplines came to Tokyo coiffed to contend. SENT: 150 words, photos.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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IRAN — Outgoing Iran president says government not always truthful. SENT: 370 words, photos.
TURKEY-WILDFIRES — Majority of Turkey wildfires under control, official says. SENT: 230 words, photos.
VOTING BILLS-TEXAS — ‘Vote them out’: Willie Nelson headlines Texas protest rally SENT: 820 words, photos.
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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS-OUTBREAK-FLORIDA — Florida reported 21,683 new cases of COVID-19, the state’s highest one-day total since the start of the pandemic, according to new federal health data, as its theme park resorts again started asking visitors to wear masks indoors. The state has become the new national epicenter for the virus. SENT: 560 words, photos.
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INTERNATIONAL
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PERSIAN-GULF-TENSIONS — Israel’s prime minister on Sunday directly blamed Iran for a drone attack on an oil tanker off the coast of Oman that killed two people as Tehran denied being involved in the assault. SENT: 400 words, photos.
MYANMAR — Six months after seizing power from the elected government, Myanmar’s military leader on Sunday repeated his pledge to hold fresh elections in two years and cooperate with Southeast Asian nations on finding a political solution for his country. SENT: 450 words, photo.
MEXICO-REFERENDUM — A referendum in Mexico on Sunday is going to cost Mexico about $25 million, few like the poorly written, yes-or-no question on the ballot, and the vote is being held in the middle of a third wave of the coronavirus pandemic. SENT: 870 words, photos.
NEW-ZEALAND-DAWN-RAIDS-APOL OGY — New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has formally apologized for a racially charged part of the nation’s history, known as the Dawn Raids. That’s when Pacific Island people were targeted for deportation in the mid-1970s during aggressive home raids by authorities to find, convict and deport overstayers. SENT: 560 words, photos.
EGYPT-SINAI — Islamic Sate group militants ambushed a checkpoint in the restive northern part of Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, killing at least five troops from the security forces, officials say. SENT: 240 words.
ALBANIA-SYRIA-REPATRIATIONS — Five women and 14 children who were the families of Albanian nationals who joined Islamic extremist groups fighting in Syria and Iraq on Sunday returned to their homeland from Syria’s Al Hol camp. SENT: 240 words.
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NATIONAL
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TULSA-MASSACRE-MASS-GRAVES — The bodies of 19 people exhumed from a Tulsa cemetery during a search for victims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre were reburied during a closed ceremony, despite objections from protesters outside the cemetery. Some demonstrators were angered at being shut out of the event, others wanted more studies done on the remains before reinterment.
LIBERTY-UNIVERSITY-FALWELL — A judge in Lynchburg, Virginia, has upheld most of a lawsuit Liberty University filed against its former leader, Jerry Falwell Jr., after an acrimonious parting last year. SENT: 370 words, photos.
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SPORTS
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BBA--REDS-METS — Joey Votto came oh-so-close to matching the major league record with a home run in eight consecutive games, but Javier Báez did clear the fence in his New York debut and the Mets rallied past the Cincinnati Reds 5-4 in 10 innings. By Sports Writer Mike Fitzpatrick. SENT: 900 words, photos.
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HOW TO REACH US
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