AP News Digest 5:35 a.m.

APTOPIX Tokyo Olympics Handball (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
APTOPIX Tokyo Olympics Handball (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
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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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TOP STORIES

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VIRUS OUTBREAK — Chaos and confusion over travel rules and measures to contain new virus outbreaks are contributing to another cruel summer for Europe’s battered tourism industry. Popular destination countries are grappling with surging COVID-19 variants, but the patchwork and last-minute nature of the efforts as the peak season gets underway threatens to derail another summer. By Business Writer Kelvin Chan. SENT: 1,020 words, photos.

VIRUS-OUTBREAK-SPAIN — Spain has an important asset as it tries to stamp out a wave of infections that is steadily filling hospitals with younger COVID-19 patients. That’s widespread public trust in the COVID-19 vaccines. Spain was like its fellow European Union members at first. The country got off to a slow start in administering shots compared to Britain and the United States But Spain quickly made up ground once vaccine deliveries started flowing to meet demand. More than 24 million Spaniards are fully vaccinated. That represents 53% of the adult population. By Joseph Wilson. SENT: 850 words, photos.

IRAQ-PRIME-MINISTER-AP INTERVIEW — Iraq’s prime minister says his country no longer requires American combat troops to fight the Islamic State group, but a formal time frame for their redeployment will depend on the outcome of talks with U.S. officials this week. By Qassim Abudul-Zahra and Samya Kullab. SENT: 1,200 words, photos, video.

WESTERN-WILDFIRES — Flames racing through rugged terrain in Northern California destroyed multiple homes as the state’s largest wildfire intensified and numerous other blazes battered the U.S. West. SENT: 670 words, photos, video, audio.

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THE OLYMPICS

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OLY-SWM-SWIMMING — Chase Kalisz got things rolling, claiming the first U.S. gold at the Olympic pool. By the time the morning was done, the powerhouse team had a whole bunch of medals. Six of them in all, quite a start Sunday for the Americans in the post-Michael Phelps era. By Paul Newberry. SENT: 800 words, photos.

OLY--SWM-TUNISIA'S GOLD — Nobody was watching Ahmed Hafnaoui in lane eight of the Olympic pool. All eyes were on the Tunisian teenager at the finish. Hafnaoui was the stunning winner of the 400-meter freestyle at the Tokyo Games, beating a field of faster and older swimmers. The 18-year-old finished in 3 minutes, 43.26 seconds, punctuating his victory with loud yelling that echoed in the mostly empty 15,000-seat arena. By Beth Harris. SENT: 430 words, photos.

OLY-OLYMPICS-ROUNDUP — Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm are known for their towering drives but they won’t make it to the tee box at the Olympics. The last two U.S. Open champions became the best-known athletes to drop out of the Tokyo Games after testing positive for COVID-19. DeChambeau’s positive came before he left the United States for Tokyo. The musclebound American famous for his game-changing swing speed will replaced by Patrick Reed. Rahm was flagged for COVID-19 for the second time in two months. He had a six-shot lead at the Memorial in early June when he was forced to withdraw because of a positive test. By Jake Seiner. SENT: 710 words, photos.

OLYMPIC-EXPLAINER-OCASSIONAL-SOCCER TEAM — Britain is back in Olympic soccer for the first time since 2012 with a women’s squad in Japan. It’s the only time the team exists. The rest of the time, Britain’s soccer players compete for their separate nations of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Even when an Olympics place has been available to Britain, internal squabbling has often seen it sacrificed because of world soccer’s politics. By Global Soccer Writer Rob Harris. SENT: 1,080 words, photos.

OLY-EXPLAINER-REFUGEE-OLYMPIC-TEAM — The Refugee Olympic Team was created by the International Olympic Committee for the 2016 Olympics to allow athletes to keep competing even if they have been forced to leave their home countries. It had 10 athletes at the Rio de Janeiro Games and is set to include 29 athletes this time in Tokyo. By James Ellingworth. SENT: 530 words, photos.

OLY-TOKYO-ARCHITECTURAL-JEWEL — The Yoyogi National Stadium was the architectural jewel of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. It’s being used again for the current Tokyo Olympics and remains one of the most important buildings of the 20th century. Yoyogi’s sweeping roof is anchored to earth and held up by steel cables — like a suspension bridge — and connects modern design with many traditional forms found in Japanese temples and shrines. Yoyogi is ageless like a 500-year-old European cathedral and sits next door to the sprawling park and Meiji Shrine in central Tokyo. Small by today’s standards, it was the swimming venue in ’64 where American teenager Don Schollander won four gold medals. SENT: 740 words, photos.

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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

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MEXICO-CUBA — Mexican president says the Organization of American States should be replaced “by a body that is truely autonomous, not anybody’s lackey.” SENT: 290 words, photo.

ISRAEL-MOROCCO — Two Israeli airlines launched their first commercial flights between Israel and Morocco, less than a year after the countries officially normalized relations. SENT: 240 words.

TURKEY-SYRIA — Turkey’s defense ministry says two Turkish soldiers were killed in northern Syria. SENT: 200 words.

CROATIA-BUS-CRASH — A bus swerved off a highway and crashed in Croatia, killing 10 people and injuring at least 30 others, police say. SENT: 260 words.

R-KELLY — Prosecutors air more claims in R. Kelly case; 1 involves boy. SENT: 420 words, photos.

SCI-INSIDE-MARS — Marsquakes offer detailed look at red planet’s interior. SENT: 570 words, photos.

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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK

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VIRUS-OUTBREAK-GERMANY — German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s chief of staff has warned that restrictions for unvaccinated people may be necessary if case numbers reach new heights in the coming months. SENT: 160 words.

VIRUS-OUTBREAK-JORDAN — 2 COVID patients dead after power outage at Jordan hospital. SENT: 150 words.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-SNOW LEOPARD INFECTED — Ramil, a 9-year-old snow leopard at the San Diego Zoo, has tested positive for the coronavirus. SENT: 150 words, photo.

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WASHINGTON/POLITICS

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TRUMP-FACT CHECK — Former President Donald Trump tells some thoroughly debunked stories as he presses his relentless effort to undermine the legitimacy of his election defeat to President Joe Biden. An AP Fact Check looks at his remarks when he addressed supporters in Phoenix. By Jonathan J. Cooper and Calvin Woodward. With AP Photos. SENT: 670 words.

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INTERNATIONAL

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FRENCH-POLYNESIA-MACRON — President Emmanuel Macron is visiting French Polynesia to showcase France’s commitment to the region amid concerns about the impact of climate change on the Pacific island territory, the legacy of French nuclear testing on its atolls — and most of all, growing Chinese dominance in the region. SENT: 550 words.

INDIA-LANDSLIDES — Days of landslides and flooding triggered by heavy monsoon rains in western India’s Maharashtra state killed at least 113 people and injured 50, officials said Sunday, as rescuers scrambled to find at least 100 missing. SENT: 300 words, photos.

CHINA-FLOODING — Trucks carrying water and food streamed into a Chinese city at the center of flooding that killed at least 63 people, while soldiers laid sandbags to fill gaps in river dikes that left neighborhoods under water. SENT: 270 words, photo.

CHINA-TYPHOON — Typhoon In-fa hit China’s east coast south of Shanghai after people living near the sea were evacuated, airline flights and trains were canceled and the public was ordered to stay indoors. SENT: 230 words, photos.

NICARAGUA-CRACKDOWN — Nicaraguan police have placed under house arrest a seventh presidential contender, meaning that almost all of those who could have challenged President Daniel Ortega in the Nov. 7 elections have now been detained. SENT: 380 words, photos.

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NATIONAL

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OBIT-JACKIE MASON — Jackie Mason, a rabbi-turned-comedian whose feisty brand of standup comedy led him to Catskills nightclubs, West Coast talk shows and Broadway stages, has died. He was 93. By Entertainment Writer Mark Kennedy. SENT 820 words, photos

OBIT-WEINBERG — Physicist Steven Weinberg, who won the Nobel prize in 1979 with two other scientists for their separate contributions unlocking mysteries of tiny particles and their electromagnetic interaction, has died at 88, the University of Texas at Austin says. SENT: 380 words, photo.

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BUSINESS/ECONOMY

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ENTERTAINMENT

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MUSIC-LEON-BRIDGES — “Gold-Diggers Sound” is an apropos name for the third studio album of an artist who struck it rich six years ago with his debut LP. Leon Bridges’ music quickly earned him recognition. “Coming Home” was nominated for Best R&B album at the 2015 Grammys. Three years later, his sophomore album’s “Bet Ain’t Worth the Hand” landed him his first Grammy win. SENT: 670 words, photos.

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SPORTS

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HKN--NHL DRAFT — The Flyers trade Jakub Voracek to the Blue Jackets for Cam Atkinson in the first major trade on the second day of the NHL draft. Voracek returns to the team that drafted him in 2007. It’s Philadelphia’s second major trade in two days. The Avalanche sign top defenseman Cale Makar to a $54 million, six-year contract. By Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno. SENT: 750 words, photos. With HKN--NHL DRAFT-NOTEBOOK — Coyotes pick Shane Doan’s son Josh in 2nd round of NHL draft (sent).

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HOW TO REACH US

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