AP News Digest 3:10 a.m.

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. ——— ONLY ON AP ——— AP POLL-ABORTION – The majority of U.S. adults, including those living in states with the deepest limits on abortion, want it to be legal at least through the initial stages of pregnancy, a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds. By Geoff Mulvihill and Linley Sanders. SENT: 810 words, photos. ———- ———– NATO SUMMIT – NATO leaders gathered to launch a highly symbolic new forum for ties with Ukraine , after committing to provide the country with more military assistance for fighting Russia but only vague assurances of future membership. U.S. President Joe Biden and his NATO counterparts will sit down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the new NATO-Ukraine Council, a permanent body where the 31 allies and Ukraine will sit as equals and be able to call crisis talks. By Chris Megerian, Karl Ritter and Seung Min Kim. SENT: 750 words, photos. UPCOMING: Updates throughout the day; events begin at 3:15 a.m. EDT. With NATO-LIVES UPDATES. RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-GRAIN DEAL – Concerns are growing that Russia will not extend a United Nations-brokered deal that allows grain to flow from Ukraine to parts of the world struggling with hunger, with ships no longer heading to the war-torn country’s Black Sea ports and food exports dwindling. The U.N. and others are striving to keep the fragile deal intact, with Ukraine and Russia both major suppliers of wheat, barley, vegetable oil and other food products that countries in Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia rely on. By Business Writer Courtney Bonnell. SENT: 1,130 words, photos. MANSON-FOLLOWER-PAROLE – Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten , a former homecoming princess who at 19 helped carry out the shocking killings of a wealthy Los Angeles couple at the direction of the violent and manipulative cult leader, walked out of a California prison after serving more than 50 years of a life sentence. By Christopher Weber. SENT: 960 words, photos, video, audio. With MANSON-FOLLOWERS-GLANCE – The Manson ‘family’: A look at key players and victims in the cult leader’s killings; and MANSON-AP-WAS-THERE – AP Was There: Cult leader Charles Manson and followers convicted for brutal California killings. NORTHEAST-FLOODING – Floodwaters receded in Vermont cities and towns pummeled by a storm that delivered two months of rain in two days, allowing officials to focus on recovering from a disaster that trapped residents in homes, closed roadways and choked streets and businesses with mud and debris. In the capital city of Montpelier, where streets were flooded Tuesday by the swollen Winooski River, officials said that water levels at a dam just upstream appeared to be stable. By Lisa Rathke. SENT: 770 words, photos, videos, audio. ABORTION-IOWA – A new ban on almost all abortions in Iowa after roughly six weeks of pregnancy prevailed with exclusively Republican support in one chamber of the Legislature as tensions flared during a special session ordered by Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds. The marathon day of committee meetings, floor debates and votes in both chambers exceeded 13 hours when the House voted just after 9 p.m. in approval of the bill. The vast majority of demonstrators at the Capitol throughout the day voiced loud opposition to the bill. By Hannah Fingerhut. SENT: 880 words, photos, audio. FEDERAL-PRISONS – Investigators probing disgraced former sports doctor Larry Nassar’s stabbing at a federal penitentiary in Florida are lacking a key piece of evidence: video of the assault. Nassar was attacked inside his cell, a blind spot for prison surveillance cameras that only record common areas and corridors, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. In federal prison parlance, because of the lack of video, it is known as an ‘unwitnessed event.’ By Michael R. Sisak and Michael Balsamo. SENT: 1,000 words, photo. —————– SPOTLIGHTING VOICES —————— LOST-NATIVE AMERICAN-CEMETERY – Archeologists resumed digging at the remote site of a former Native American boarding school in central Nebraska, searching for the remains of children who died there decades ago. SENT: 740 words, photos. ——————- RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR —————— RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR CIVILIAN TRAINING – In a cramped municipal building in a residential area of the Ukrainian capital, a group of people take turns training to shoot from a replica of a machine gun with the help of a weapon’s training simulator relying on virtual reality. SENT: 670 words, photos. ———- ———- LAS VEGAS-CASINO HOSTAGE – Man takes woman hostage in hotel room at Caesars casino, Las Vegas police say. SENT: 400 words, photo. NEW ZEALAND-VOLCANO-TRIAL – American woman says she thought she would die when New Zealand volcano erupted. SENT: 840 words, photos. ARETHA FRANKLIN-WILL – Jury decides 2014 document found in Aretha Franklin’s couch is a valid will. SENT: 650 words, photos, video, audio. ——————– WASHINGTON/ POLITICS ——————– SUPREME COURT-REACTION – The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, responding to Associated Press investigative stories on the Supreme Court, said it was time for the justices to bring their conduct in line with the ethical standards of other branches of government. By Chris Megerian, Eric Tucker and Brian Slodysko. SENT: 500 words, photos, videos, audio. ELECTION 2024-PENCE-ABORTION – Former Vice President Mike Pence , who is seeking the White House in 2024, is the only major candidate who supports a federal ban on abortion at six weeks, before many women know they’re pregnant. He has implored his Republican rivals to back a 15-week federal ban as a minimum national standard. And in a recent interview, Pence said abortion should be banned even when a pregnancy isn’t viable. By Jill Colvin. UPCOMING: 1,650 words, photos by 5:30 a.m. An abridged version of 1,020 words will also be available. CONGRESS-OVERSIGHT-FBI – The director of the FBI faces some of his harshest critics in Congress as he testifies before a House committee that is leading several investigations into claims that the law enforcement agency unfairly targets conservatives. By Farnoush Amiri. SENT: 820 words, photo. UPCOMING: 990 words after 10 a.m. hearing. CALIFORNIA-GOVERNOR – California Gov. Gavin Newsom says looming multi-billion budget deficits will not change his agenda for his second term in office. Newsom told The Associated Press in an interview he is committed to maintaining policies he pushed for during his first term. By Adam Beam. SENT: 880 words, photo. ——– NATIONAL ——– EDUCATION-STUDENT-LOANS – The Biden administration calls it a ‘student loan safety net.’ Opponents call it a backdoor attempt to make college free. And it could be the next battleground in the legal fight over student loan relief. Starting this summer, millions of Americans with student loans will be able to enroll in a new repayment plan that offers some of the most lenient terms ever. Interest won’t pile up as long as borrowers make regular payments. Millions of people will have monthly payments reduced to $0. And in as little as 10 years, any remaining debt will be canceled. By Education Writer Collin Binkley. SENT: 1,100 words, photos. TEXAS-MASS SHOOTING-SHERIFF – A Texas sheriff who’s been the subject of years of complaints about dysfunction and corruption was repeatedly reported to state and federal law enforcement by his own deputies – yet an outside investigation never gained momentum, according to interviews and records reviewed by The Associated Press. Two former deputies said they tried to get the Texas Rangers to look into wrongdoing in the sheriff’s office when they worked there, but the state’s elite investigative agency did little to pursue a case. One of them later gave a detailed interview to an officer with the FBI’s regional public corruption taskforce but said it was met with the same result. By Jake Bleiberg. SENT: 640 words, photos. ————- INTERNATIONAL ————- CHINA-US – U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry will travel to Beijing next week to discuss strategies for limiting global warming, amid a push by the world’s two largest economies to reengage on multiple issues following a sharp decline in contacts. SENT: 430 words, photos. KOREAS-TENSIONS – North Korea conducted its first intercontinental ballistic missile test in three months, two days after it threatened ‘shocking’ consequences to protest what it called provocative U.S. reconnaissance activity near its territory. SENT: 950 words, photos. THAILAND-POLITICS – A day before Thailand’s Parliament is due to pick a new prime minister, Thailand’s state Election Commission said it concluded there is evidence that the top candidate, Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat, violated election law and referred his case to the Constitutional Court for a ruling. SENT: 440 words, photos. TAIWAN-CHINA – China sent navy ships and a large group of warplanes, including fighter jets and bombers, toward Taiwan over two days, the island’s defense ministry said, before its annual military exercises aimed at defending itself against a possible invasion. SENT: 330 words. TAIWAN-PARAGUAY – Paraguay’s president-elect, Santiago Pena, committed to maintaining diplomatic ties with Taiwan, going against a trend of Taipei’s diplomatic allies switching their allegiance to China. SENT: 360 words. ISRAEL-CAVE-HOME – Nissim Kahlon has transformed a tiny cave on a Mediterranean beach into an elaborate underground labyrinth filled with chiseled tunnels, detailed mosaic floors and a network of staircases and chambers. Fifty years after Kahlon moved into the home, Israel’s Environmental Protection Ministry has served him an eviction notice, saying the structure is illegal and threatens Israel’s coastline. By Ilan Ben Zion and Ariel Schalit. SENT: 820 words, photos. ————– HEALTH & SCIENCE ————— GIANT SLOTH-EARLY AMERICANS – Bony material from giant sloths was carved into ornaments by early humans who lived alongside the extinct megafauna in prehistoric Brazil, around 25,000 to 27,000 years ago, according to a new study. By Science Writer Christina Larson. SENT: 590 words, photos. —————- BUSINESS/ECONOMY —————- FINANCIAL-MARKETS – Asian shares were mostly higher after stocks advanced on Wall Street as investors awaited an update on U.S. inflation that will hopefully show a smaller increase in pain for everyone. By Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach. SENT: 620 words, photos, audio. ——– SPORTS ——- ALL-STAR-GAME – Elias Díaz hit a two-run homer off Felix Bautista in the eighth inning, and the National League snapped a nine-game losing streak in the All-Star Game with a 3-2 win over the American League. By Sports Writer Tim Booth. SENT: 950 words, photos. ——————— ENTERTAINMENT/LIFESTYLES ——————— HOLLYWOOD-STRIKES – Unionized Hollywood actors on the verge of a strike have agreed to allow a last-minute intervention from federal mediators but say they doubt a deal will be reached by a negotiation deadline late Wednesday. By Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton. SENT: 290 words, photo. EMMY-NOMINATIONS – HBO may dominate Emmy nominations with its elite trio of ‘Succession,’ ‘The White Lotus’ and ‘The Last of Us,’ but the dominant theme darkening the scene is the ongoing writers strike and the looming possibility that actors may soon join them. By Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton. SENT: 420 words, photo. ————— HOW TO REACH US ————— At the Nerve Center, Lorian Belanger can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, Shuji Kajiyama (ext. 1900). For graphics and interactives, ext. 7636. Expanded AP content can be obtained from AP Newsroom. For access to AP Newsroom and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport@ap.org or call 844-777-2006.