AP News Digest 3:45 am

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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RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR-MARIUPOL’S CURSE — The bodies of the children all lie here, dumped into this narrow trench hastily dug into the frozen earth of Mariupol to the constant drumbeat of shelling. Each airstrike and shell that relentlessly pounds Mariupol drives home the curse of a geography that has put the city squarely in the path of Russia’s domination of Ukraine. In the more than two weeks since Russia’s war began, two AP journalists have been the only international media present in Mariupol, a seaport under siege that has become a symbol both of Putin’s relentless drive to crush Ukraine and of fierce resistance on the ground. Mystyslav Chernov and Evgeniy Maloletka. UPCOMING: 2,260 words, photos by 6 a.m.

AP POLL-POLICING — Few Americans believe there has been significant progress over the last 50 years in achieving equal treatment for Black people in dealings with police and the criminal justice system, according to a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. By Aaron Morrison and Hannah Fingerhut. SENT: 970 words, photos, graphic.

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TOP STORIES

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RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR — The Russian offensive in Ukraine edged closer to central Kyiv even as the two countries kept open a narrow diplomatic channel with more planned talks. Shortly before dawn, large explosions thundered across Kyiv. A series of Russian strikes hit a residential neighborhood in the capital, igniting a huge fire and a frantic rescue effort in a 15-story apartment building. Shockwaves from an explosion also damaged the entry to a downtown subway station that has been used as a bomb shelter. City authorities tweeted an image of the blown-out facade, saying trains would no longer stop at the station. By Andrea Rosa. SENT: 1,430 words, photos, videos. With RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-THE-LATEST; RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-THINGS TO KNOW.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-AMERICA IN EUROPE — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine and his push to upend the broader security order in Europe may lead to a historic shift in American thinking about defense of the continent. Depending on how far Putin goes, this could mean a buildup of U.S. military power in Europe not seen since the Cold War. By National Security Writer Robert Burns. SENT: 960 words, photos.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE-ALEPPO REVISITED — The violent images from Ukraine under Russian attack are triggering traumatic memories for Syrians as they mark the 11th anniversary of their ongoing war this week. Afraa Hashem, a survivor of the months-long siege of Syria’s Aleppo recalls the fear, loneliness and daily scramble to secure food for her children. The formerly rebel-held eastern Aleppo is a microcosm of a place that brimmed with rebellious defiance until Russian planes wrought brutal destruction and turned the momentum of the war in President Bashar Assad’s favor. By AJ Naddaff. SENT: 1,260 words, photos. Also see MORE ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR below. For full coverage.

INDIA-BANNING THE HIJAB — Muslim students in a southern Indian state have found themselves at the center of a debate over hijab bans in schools. In question is the place of Islamic head coverings in the Hindu-majority but constitutionally secular nation. The issue has become a flashpoint for the battle over the rights of Muslims, who fear they are being shunted aside in the country as a minority. By Sheikh Saaliq. SENT: 1,410 words, photos, video. With INDIA HIJAB — India court upholds ban on hijab in schools and colleges.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHINA — China’s new COVID-19 cases more than doubled from the previous day as the country faces by far its biggest outbreak since the early days of the pandemic. SENT: 310 words, photos.

NEW ZEALAND-MOSQUE SHOOTING ANNIVERSARY — The lingering injuries from being shot nine times did not stop Temel Atacocugu from completing a two-week walk and bike ride for peace, the third anniversary of a gunman’s slaughter of 51 Muslim worshippers. By Nick Perry. SENT: 410 words, photos.

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MORE ON RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR

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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-SUPPLY-CHAINS — It can be hard to measure the ways that Russia’s war in Ukraine has disrupted the global supply of parts and raw materials needed to complete a variety of products — from cars to computer chips. By Technology Writer Matt O’Brien. SENT: 820 words, photos.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-PROTESTER — A live evening news program on Russia’s state television channel was interrupted by a person who walked into the studio holding a poster protesting the war in Ukraine. SENT: 320 words.

MET OPERA-UKRAINE BENEFIT — With three huge yellow-and-blue Ukraine flags draped across the front of the house, the Metropolitan Opera held a benefit for the under-attack nation. SENT: 570 words, photo.

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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK

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VIRUS OUTBREAK-SOUTH KOREA — South Korea had its deadliest day yet of the pandemic, with 293 deaths reported in the latest 24 hours, as the country grapples with a record surge in coronavirus infections driven by the fast-moving omicron variant. SENT: 560 words, photos.

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TRENDING NEWS

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FATAL SHOOTING-POLICE — Police: Suspect shot, killed by three Texas officers pulled gun. SENT: 400 words.

DRIVE-BY SHOOTING-TWO KILLED — Teen charged in fatal drive-by of man, 2-year-old in Alabama. SENT: 390 words, photos.

CARGO SHIP AGROUND — Bid underway to refloat cargo ship aground in Chesapeake Bay. SENT: 140 words, photos.

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ELECTION 2022

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ELECTION 2022-DEMOCRATS-FUNDRAISING — President Joe Biden held his first in-person fundraiser since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, marking a return to a traditional form of politics that many Democrats eschewed as a matter of public safety over the past two years. SENT: 450 words, photo.

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INTERNATIONAL

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KOREAS-TENSIONS-YOON’S CHOICES — After winning a bitterly contested presidential election, South Korean conservative Yoon Suk Yeol will enter office facing a quickly growing North Korean nuclear threat — and with few easy choices ahead to deal with it. SENT: 1,070 words, photos.

MYANMAR-AIR STRIKES — Myanmar’s military is targeting civilians in air and ground attacks on a scale unmatched in the country since World War II, according to a longtime relief worker who spent almost three months in a combat zone in the Southeast Asian nation. SENT: 820 words, photos.

UNITED NATIONS-WOMEN-CONFLICT-CLIMATE — Women and girls pay the highest price in all crises and conflicts from Myanmar and Afghanistan to the Sahel and Haiti, and “the horrifying war in Ukraine now joins that list,” the head of the U.N. women’s agency said. SENT: 750 words, photos.

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NATIONAL

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HOMELESS ATTACKS — The mayors of New York City and Washington D.C. appealed to the public for help in an urgent search for a gunman who has been stalking homeless men asleep on their streets, killing at least two people and wounding three others in less than two weeks. SENT: 940 words, photos, video.

IDAHO ABORTION BILL — Legislation aimed at banning abortions in Idaho after six weeks of pregnancy by allowing potential family members to sue a doctor who performs one headed to the governor, where its fate is uncertain. SENT: 510 words, photo.

ARKANSAS DEPUTY SHOOTS TEEN — Jury selection was set to begin in the trial of a former Arkansas deputy charged with manslaughter for fatally shooting a white teenager during a traffic stop, a case that has drawn the attention of national civil rights activists. SENT: 330 words, photo.

PUERTO RICO-BANKRUPTCY — Puerto Rico’s government formally exited bankruptcy, completing the largest public debt restructuring in U.S. history after announcing nearly seven years ago that it was unable to pay its more than $70 billion debt. SENT: 550 words, photo.

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BUSINESS/ECONOMY

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FINANCIAL MARKETS — Share prices tumbled in China, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index down nearly 6% and the Shanghai Composite index sinking 5% as virus lockdowns and rising numbers of COVID cases threaten to disrupt manufacturing and trade. By Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach. SENT: 750 words, photos. With MARKETS-NICKEL TRING — London Metal Exchange to resume nickel trade.

PRODUCER PRICES — Labor Department releases the Producer Price Index for February. By Economics Writer Paul Wiseman. UPCOMING: 130 words, photo, after 8:30 a.m. release, then updated.

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SPORTS

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OLYMPICS AND POLITICS — The International Olympic Committee has always been political, but Russia’s invasion of Ukraine three weeks ago exposed its irreconcilable claims of “political neutrality.” By Sports Writer Stephen Wade. SENT: 1,430 words, photos.

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HOW TO REACH US

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At the Nerve Center, Jerome Minerva can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, Wally Santana (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 [email protected] or call 844-777-2006.