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.
----------------—
ONLY ON AP
An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man wearing a protective face mask swims in the Mediterranean Sea, on a beach segregated for males three days a week, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, July 8, 2020. In an effort to quell the rapid spread of the coronavirus, Israel has re-imposed a series of restrictions on the public. This week, the Israeli government limited gatherings and ordered reception halls, restaurants, bars, theaters, fitness centers and pools be shut down again. (AP PhotoOded Balilty)
----------------—
VIRUS OUTBREAK-HOUSTON — Texas is seeing a surge in the number of people testing positive for the coronavirus since it began aggressively loosening restrictions on gatherings in May. To see the effect of the surge on hospitals, Associated Press journalists visited United Memorial Medical Center in north Houston. The hospital says 88 of its 117 beds are devoted to coronavirus patients — and it may soon turn over the whole facility to treating those with from the virus. By Nomaan Merchant. SENT: 1,200 words, photos, video.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-DESPERATION SCIENCE — Desperate to solve the deadly conundrum of COVID-19, the world is clamoring for fast answers and solutions from a research system not built for haste. The ironic, and perhaps tragic, result: Scientific shortcuts have slowed understanding of the disease and delayed the ability to find out which drugs help, hurt or have no effect at all. By Chief Medical Writer Marilynn Marchione. SENT: 2,100 words, photos, video. An abridged version of 1,110 words is available.
Crews attach straps to the statue Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart on Monument Avenue Tuesday July 7, 2020, in Richmond, Va. The statue is one of several that will be removed by the city as part of the Black Lives Matter reaction. (AP PhotoSteve Helber)
----------------—-
TOP STORIES
-------------------
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-GLOBAL — Australia isolates the state of Victoria in a bid to contain the worsening spread of the coronavirus as the city of Melbourne prepares for its second lockdown, an example of a resurgent disease in places that initially succeeded in taming it. By Rod McGuirk. SENT: 700 words, photos. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA — Australian prime minister defends Melbourne lockdown; VIRUS OUTBREAK-THE LATEST.
FILE - In this July 2, 2020, file photo, a Palestinian security unit mans a checkpoint at an entrance of in the West Bank city of Ramallah. The Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, is grappling with a renewed coronavirus outbreak that authorities blame on the summer wedding season. Over the last few weeks, infections have skyrocketed across the territory, with more than 5,000 confirmed cases and 18 deaths. (AP PhotoNasser Nasser, File)
CRIME WAVE — Still reeling from the coronavirus pandemic and street protests, exhausted cities are facing yet another challenge: a surge in shootings that has left dozens dead, including young children. By Tom Hays and Colleen Long. SENT: 1,060 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-REOPENING SCHOOLS — President Donald Trump is launching an all-out effort to press state and local officials to reopen schools this fall. By Education Writer Collin Binkley. SENT: 1,070 words, photos, video.
ELECTION 2020-TRUMP-RACE — Trump is accelerating his use of racially divisive rhetoric, alarming many in his own party and running contrary to the advice of some in his inner circle. By Jonathan Lemire. SENT: 1,090 words, photos.
FILE - In this Feb. 6, 1998, file photo, Mary Kay Letourneau listens to testimony during a court hearing in Seattle Letourneau, who married her former sixth-grade student after she was convicted for raping him, has died. She was 58. Her lawyer David Gehrke told news outlets Letourneau died Tuesday, July 7, 2020, of cancer. The former suburban Seattle teacher was arrested in 1997 after she became pregnant with Vili Fualaau's child. She later pleaded guilty to second-degree child rape. (Alan BernerThe Seattle Times via AP, Pool, File)
RACIAL INJUSTICE-EMPTY MONUMENTS — Activists and towns are left wondering what to do with empty spaces that once honored historic figures tied to racism as statues and monuments fall. By Russell Contreras. SENT: 660 words, photos.
Find more coverage of Racial Injustice in AP Newsroom.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-PALESTINIAN WEDDINGS — The Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, is grappling with a renewed coronavirus outbreak that authorities blame on the summer wedding season. By Mohammed Daraghmeh. SENT: 800 words, photos.
---------------------------------------------—-
MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
----------------------------------------------—
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SMALL BUSINESS LOANS-CONGRESS — At least a dozen lawmakers have ties to organizations that received federal coronavirus aid. SENT: 1,090 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-BRAZIL — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro says he is confident that he will swiftly recover from the new coronavirus thanks to treatment with hydroxychloroquine, the anti-malaria drug that has not been proven effective against COVID-19. SENT: 950 words, photos. With AP-EXPLAINS:-VIRUS-OUTBREAK-BOLSONARO AP Explains: Bolsonaro downplays virus fears for months.
Find more coverage of the Virus Outbreak in AP Newsroom.
---------------------------------------------
WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
---------------------------------------------
SUPREME COURT-ROBERTS — Chief Justice Roberts recently spent a night in a hospital after a fall. SENT: 310 words, photo.
SOCIAL-JUSTICE-WNBA-OWNER — Dream owner Loeffler objects to WNBA’s social justice plans. SENT: 400 words, photos.
FACEBOOK-CIVIL RIGHTS-MEETINGS — Civil rights groups denounce Facebook over hate speech. SENT: 700 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-RAVENS-QUARTERBACK — Ravens quarterback Jackson cancels Florida event amid virus surge. SENT: 210 words, photos.
UNIVERSITY-OF-CALIFORNIA-PRESIDENT — University of California system names first Black president. SENT: 900 words, photos.
TAIWAN-FANTASY FLYING — Would-be travelers in Taiwan live out dreams of flying again. SENT: 310 words, photos.
—————————————————
WASHINGTON/ POLITICS
——————————————————
UNITED STATES-IRAQ — The top U.S. general for Iraq is talking optimistically about a smaller, but enduring military presence in the country. SENT: 640 words, photos.
———————
NATIONAL
———————
OBIT-MARY-KAY-LETOURNEAU — Mary Kay Letourneau, a teacher who married her former sixth-grade student after she was convicted of raping him in a case that drew international headlines, has died. She was 58. SENT: 480 words, photos.
JEFFREY EPSTEIN-ASSOCIATE — Jeffrey Epstein’s ex-girlfriend will appear remotely by video for a July 14 courthouse arraignment and bail hearing on charges she recruited girls for him to sexually abuse over two decades ago, a judge says. SENT: 350 words, photos.
TEXAS-EXECUTION — A Texas death row inmate condemned for fatally shooting an 82-year-old man nearly three decades ago was scheduled to die by lethal injection, as the nation’s busiest death penalty state prepared to resume executions following a five-month delay during the coronavirus pandemic. SENT: 740 words, photo.
TEEN RESTRAINT-DEATH — At least seven staffers at a youth facility in Michigan forcibly restrained a teenager who had a heart attack and died two days later. SENT: 770 words.
------------------———
INTERNATIONAL
--------------------——
JAPAN-FLOODS — Pounding rain that already caused deadly floods in southern Japan is moving northeast, battering large areas of Japan’s main island, swelling more rivers, triggering mudslides and destroying houses and roads. SENT: 550 words, photos. With CHINA-FLOODING — Rescuers seek nine people missing in central China landslide.
POLAND-PRESIDENTIAL-ELECTION — Two bitter rivals are heading into a razor’s-edge presidential runoff election Sunday in Poland that is seen as an important test of populism in Europe after a campaign that exacerbated a conservative-liberal divide in the country. SENT: 1,060 words, photos.
HONG KONG-CHINA — Beijing’s national security office is inaugurated in Hong Kong, just over a week after China’s central government imposed a tough new law on the city that critics view as a further deterioration of freedoms promised to the former British colony. SENT: 500 words, photos.
US-NORTH KOREA — Trump’s point man to North Korea says that the U.S. administration is ready to resume stalled nuclear negotiations despite the North’s repeated claims that it has no immediate intent for dialogue with Washington. SENT: 610 words, photos. With CHINA-US-RUSSIA-NUCLEAR — China calls U.S. invite to nuclear talks a ploy to derail them.
UNITED NATIONS AT 75 — The 193 members of the United Nations reach agreement on a declaration to commemorate this year’s 75th anniversary of the world organization, recalling the U.N.’s successes and failure and vowing to build a post-pandemic world that is more equal, works together, and protects the planet. SENT: 520 words.
—————————————-
HEALTH & SCIENCE
——————————————
NIGERIA-RARE GORILLAS — Conservationists have captured the first images of a group of rare Cross River gorillas with multiple babies in Nigeria. SENT: 700 words, photos.
———————————
BUSINESS/TECH
———————————
FINANCIAL-MARKETS — Shares were mostly lower in Asia as uncertainty over the coronavirus pandemic sapped the buying enthusiasm that has been driving prices higher. By Business Writer Yuri Kageyama. SENT: 740 words, photos. With BRITAIN-ECONOMY — U.K. Treasury chief plans boost to youth jobs.
————————
SPORTS
————————
TIM DAHLBERG-PLAYING AGAIN — Despite the best efforts of baseball and other sports, the COVID-19 virus will determine who plays and for how long. By Sports Columnist Tim Dahlberg. SENT: 740 words, photos.
----------------------————
HOW TO REACH US
----------------------————
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, Dien Magno (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.