AP News Digest 7:10 a.m.
Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All Times EST. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.
———————————————
———————————————
AMERICAN HOSTAGES-THE BEATLES —As two Islamic State militants faced a judge in Virginia, Diane Foley listened from home and strained to make out the voices of the men prosecutors say kidnapped her son before he was murdered. Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh stand accused of belonging to an IS cell dubbed “the Beatles,” an incongruously lighthearted nickname for British citizens blamed for the jailing, torture and murder of Western hostages in Syria. After geopolitical breakthroughs and stalemates, military actions in Syria and court fights in London, the Justice Department’s most significant terrorism prosecution in years was finally underway. By Eric Tucker. SENT: 1,690 words, photos, video. A shorter version is also available.
—————————
—————————
VIRUS-OUTBREAK — Moderna Inc. says it will ask U.S. and European regulators to allow emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine as new study results confirm the shots offer strong protection. By Lauran Neergaard. SENT: 960 words, photos.
CONGRESS RETURNS — After months of shadowboxing amid a tense and toxic campaign, Congress’ main players are returning to Capitol Hill for one final, perhaps futile, attempt at deal making on a challenging menu of year-end business. By Andrew Taylor. SENT: 870 words, photos.
BIDEN-ECONOMIC TEAM — President-elect Joe Biden is expected in the coming days to name several of his most senior economic advisers, a group that includes several liberal economists and policy specialists who established their credentials during the previous two Democratic administrations. By Aamer Madhani. SENT: 550 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE FRAUD PREVENTION — The coronavirus vaccine inching toward approval in the U.S. is desperately anticipated by weary Americans longing for a path back to normal life. But criminals are waiting, too, ready to use that desperation to their advantage, federal investigators say. By Colleen Long. SENT: 1,000 words, photos. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE FRAUD PREVENTION-BOX.
IRAN — A top Iranian security official says Israel used “electronic devices” to remotely kill a scientist who founded the country’s nuclear program in the 2000s. Israel, long suspected of killing Iranian nuclear scientists over the last decade, has declined to comment on the killing of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh. By Nasser Karimi and Jon Gambrell. SENT: 790 words, photos, developing.
FRANCE-WATCHING-THE-POLICE — French activists fear that a proposed new security law will deprive them of a potent weapon against abuse — cellphone videos of police activity — threatening efforts to document police brutality, especially in impoverished immigrant neighborhoods. By Sylvie Corbet. SENT: 890 words, photos.
TRUMP-VIRUS-WHITE HOUSE — A Pennsylvania state senator abruptly left a West Wing meeting with President Donald Trump after being informed he had tested positive for the coronavirus, a person with direct knowledge of the meeting told The Associated Press. By Mark Scolforo. SENT: 740 words, photos. WITH: TRUMP-FACT CHECK — Trump has clung to false notions that Biden stole the presidential election, citing thousands of votes magically switched to the president-elect and poll watchers illegally barred on Election Day, neither of which happened. SENT: 1,120 words, photos.
——————————————————————
WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
—————————————————————-
WORD-OF-THE-YEAR-MERRIAM-WEBSTER — If you were to choose a word that rose above most in 2020, which word would it be? Ding, ding, ding: Merriam-Webster announced “pandemic” as its 2020 word of the year. SENT: 620 words, photo.
VATICAN-CARDINAL PELL — Cardinal George Pell, who was convicted and then acquitted of sexual abuse in his native Australia, reflects on Pope Francis’ papacy and the humiliations of solitary confinement in his jailhouse memoir. SENT: 940 words, photo.
AUSTRALIA-CHINA-GRAPHIC-TWEET — Australia’s prime minister says a tweet by a Chinese official which shows a fake image of an Australian soldier appearing to slit a child’s throat is “truly repugnant.” SENT: 470 words, photo.
NEW ZEALAND-VOLCANO-CHARGES — New Zealand authorities have filed safety violation charges against 10 organizations and three individuals after a volcanic eruption at White Island last year killed 22 people. SENT: 400 words, photo.
MALAYSIA-TEEN-DEATH — A British pathologist says there was no positive evidence that a French-Irish teenager found dead last year near a Malaysian jungle resort was sexually assaulted, but he couldn’t fully rule it out due to severe body decomposition. SENT: 590 words, photo.
INDONESIA-VOLCANO ERUPTS — A volcano in eastern Indonesia has erupted, sending a column of ash as high as 4,000 meters (13,120 feet) into the sky and prompting the evacuation of nearly 2,800 people. SENT: 230 words.
PORTUGAL-CLIMATE CASE — The European Court of Human Rights is requiring a prompt response from 33 countries to an ambitious climate change case brought by six young Portuguese. SENT: 250 words.
—————————————————
—————————————————-
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-BRITAIN-SMALL-BUSINESS-STRUGGLES — Small businesses all over the world are struggling as COVID-19 forces many to close outright while also remaking consumer habits, but many in Britain are facing the double whammy of the pandemic and the economic uncertainty caused by Brexit. SENT: 1,200 words, photos.
SRI LANKA-PRISON RIOT — Officials say six inmates were killed and 35 others were injured when guards opened fire to control a riot at a prison on the outskirts of Sri Lanka’s capital. Pandemic-related unrest has been growing in Sri Lanka’s overcrowded prisons where inmates have staged protests in recent weeks. SENT: 390 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-NEW-YORK — New York City will reopen its school system to in-person learning and increase the number of days a week many children attend class even as the coronavirus pandemic intensifies in the city. SENT: 790 words, photo, video.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-THE-LATEST — The European Union’s latest surge of coronavirus infections is flattening or going down in some but not all countries across the continent but it’s too early to relax current virus restrictions, the head of the continent’s disease control center said. SENT: 1,630 words, photos, developing. WITH: VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA.
OIL MARKETS — Leaders of the OPEC cartel are meeting virtually to decide how much oil their members should produce as lockdowns related to the coronavirus continue to stifle demand for crude. They’re expected to extend production cuts well into the new year, in an effort to boost volatile oil prices. By Business Writer Cathy Bussewitz. SENT: 430 words, photo.
Find more coverage on the Virus Outbreak on the featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
——————————————————-
——————————————————
BIDEN-STAFF — Biden will have an all-female senior communications team at his White House, reflecting his stated desire to build out a diverse White House team as well as what’s expected to be a return to a more traditional press operation. SENT: 700 words, photos. WITH: BIDEN-FOOT — Biden will likely wear a walking boot for several weeks after breaking his right foot while playing with one of his dogs, officials say. SENT: 300 words, photos.
————————————
————————————
ETHIOPIA-MILITARY CONFRONTATION — The fugitive leader of Ethiopia’s defiant Tigray region is calling on Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to “stop the madness” and withdraw troops from the region as he asserted that fighting continues “on every front” despite Abiy’s claim of victory. SENT: 580 words, photos.
TANZANIA-BURUNDIAN REFUGEES TORTURED — A new Human Rights Watch report details the horrific experiences of Burundian refugees and asylum seekers in Tanzania who have forcibly disappeared from refugee camps, sometimes after being brutally tortured by police. SENT: 700 words, photo.
THAILAND-PROTESTS — Five leaders of Thailand’s pro-democracy movement have reported to police to acknowledge charges that they defamed the king, the most serious of many offenses of which they stand accused. SENT: 580 words, photos.
HONG KONG-PRO-DEMOCRACY LAWMAKER — After nearly three decades in politics, Wu Chi-wai. chairman of Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy party is stepping down as a lawmaker while urging supporters to rethink how to continue their fight for change. All 15 lawmakers in the pro-democracy camp have tendered their resignations to protest a Beijing resolution in early November that led to the disqualifications of four of their colleagues. SENT: 730 words, photos. WITH: CHINA-US — China says it is sanctioning leaders of US government-affiliated bodies that promote democracy around the world in response to what it calls practices that “blatantly meddle in Hong Kong affairs.” SENT: 410 words.
MALI-ATTACKS — Three cities in northern Mali were hit by simultaneous attacks against military camps housing international forces, according to residents and a United Nations official. SENT: 190 words.
CHEMICAL WEAPONS-MEETING — Russia has come under renewed pressure to explain the nerve agent attack on opposition figure Alexei Navalny as the annual meeting of the global chemical weapons watchdog got underway. SENT: 350 words, photos.
EUROPE-MIGRANTS — Spain has dismantled most of the temporary camp for migrant processing that became known as the “dock of shame” for holding in unfit conditions thousands of Africans arriving in the Canary Islands. SENT: 350 words.
BRAZIL-MAYORAL-ELECTIONS-BOLSONARO — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro suffered heavy losses in mayoral elections that were completed with 57 runoffs. 650 words, photos. WITH: BRAZIL-MAYORAL-ELECTIONS.
————————-
BUSINESS
————————
FINANCIAL-MARKETS — Global shares have fallen despite a record high finish on Wall Street last week driven by hopes for a COVID-19 vaccine and relief for the global economy. SENT: 610 words, photos.
BRITAIN-HUAWEI — Wireless carriers in the U.K. won’t be allowed to install Huawei equipment in their high-speed 5G networks after September 2021, the British government said, hardening its line against the Chinese technology company. SENT: 340 words, photo.
IHS-MARKIT-BUYOUT — S&P Global is buying IHS Markit in a $44 billion all-stock deal that brings together two of the largest data providers to Wall Street. SENT: 170 words.
—————————————
ENTERTAINMENT
—————————————
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-BELGIUM — With nothing on their agendas for months to come, music festival organizers in Belgium want to use their know-how to help the country’s coronavirus vaccination campaign. SENT: 300 words, photos.
————————-
SPORTS
————————-
FBN-VIRUS-OUTBREAK-49ERS — San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan says the team was blindsided by new coronavirus regulations put in place by Santa Clara County officials that will force the 49ers to find a temporary new home for practice and games. SENT: 700 words, photo. WITH: VIRUS OUTBREAK-BRONCOS.
———————————————
HOW TO REACH US
———————————————
At the Nerve Center, Mae Anderson 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 877-836-9477.