AP News Digest 7 a.m.

Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EDT. Find the AP’s top photos of the day in Today’s Photo Collection. For up-to-the-minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan in AP Newsroom.

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TOP STORIES

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ELECTION 2024-CAMPAIGN STRATEGY — As the 2024 presidential contest speeds to its conclusion, Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump are embracing wildly different strategies. By Steve Peoples, Jill Colvin and Zeke Miller. SENT: 1,130 words, photos.

ELECTION 2024-HOUSING — Millions of Americans can’t afford to buy a home or rent a suitable apartment, making housing a central issue for voters in the upcoming presidential election. The Harris and Trump campaigns have laid out plans aimed at boosting home construction. Economists say the campaigns’ platforms offer some good ideas, but no sure fixes to the housing market’s longstanding challenges. By Sally Ho and Alex Veiga. SENT: 1,230 words, photos.

ELECTION 2024-HARRIS — Kamala Harris is set to do a CNN Town Hall at 9 p.m. Wednesday. UPCOMING with photos, video.

NORTH KOREA-RUSSIA — South Korea’s spy agency says that about 3,000 North Korean troops have been sent to Russia and they are now receiving training on how to use drones and other equipment before being deployed to battlefields in Ukraine. Lawmakers say that NIS assesses that North Korea aims to deploy a total of 10,000 troops to Russia by December. By Hyung Jin-Kim. SENT: 560 words, photos.

MIDEAST WARS-BLINKEN —- Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Israel needs to pursue an “enduring strategic success” after its tactical victories against Hamas. On Wednesday he urged it to seek a deal that would end the war in the Gaza Strip and bring back dozens of hostages.With MIDEAST WARS-THE LATEST

FRANCE RAPE TRIAL — The sensational trial of 50 men accused of raping an unwitting and unconscious French woman who was repeatedly drugged by her husband has exposed what critics say is a dark rape culture in the country. The defendants include grandfathers, fathers, husbands, retirees and young workers who represent a virtual cross-section of society. The trial, which started Sept. 2 and isn’t expected to conclude until December, has exposed how pornography, chatrooms and men’s disdain for or hazy understanding of consent is fueling rape culture. By Diane Jeantet. SENT: 1,170 words, photos

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MORE NEWS

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OBIT-FERNANDO VALENZUELA — Fernando Valenzuela, the Los Angeles Dodgers pitching ace who inspired “Fernandomania” in the early 1980s, has died. SENT: 1,350 words, photos.

OHTANI-BALL AUCTION — Shohei Ohtani’s 50th home run ball has sold at auction for nearly $4.4 million, a record high price not just for a baseball, but for any ball in any sport. SENT: 300 words, photos.

TOY HALL OF FAME —- Before the National Toy Hall of Fame inducts a new class each fall, curators at the upstate New York attraction have to figure out how to showcase the honorees. It’s not always easy. SENT: 1,000 words, photos, video.

AUSTRALIA-BRITAIN-ROYALS — An Indigenous senator has intensified her criticism of King Charles III, again accusing the British monarch of complicity in the “genocide” against Australia’s First Peoples and declaring she will not be “shut down.” SENT: 300 words, photos. video. Find a selection of AP photos from the visit in the Australia-Britain-Royals-Photo Collection.

BRAZIL-AMAZON-CARGILL-MURAL —- Brazilian artist Mundano is presenting a massive street mural in Sao Paulo that uses ash from wildfires and mud from floods to highlight extreme weather events wreaking devastation in the country. SENT: 530 words, photos.

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WASHINGTON/POLITICS

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ELECTION 2024-PENNSYLVANIA-EDUCATION — All over the country, people with more education are leaning more Democratic, a shift that’s reshaping American politics. One of the places where it could have the most impact this year is Centre County, Pennsylvania, which is right in the middle of a critical battleground state. By Chris Megerian and Fatima Hussein. SENT: 2000 words, photos. With ELECTION 2024-PENNSYLVANIA-GENDER — This year’s presidential election could see a historic gender gap as young women line up behind Democrat Kamala Harris’ bid to be the first female president; ELECTION 2024-PENNSYLVANIA EDUCATION-TAKEAWAYS.

ELECTION 2024-SUPREME COURT — Conservatives already have a supermajority on the Supreme Court as a result of Donald Trump’s presidency. If Trump wins a second term, the right side of the court could retain control for several more decades SENT: 740 words, photos.

ELECTION 2024-VOTING MISINFORMATION — Voting machines flipping votes. More registered voters than people eligible. Noncitizens casting ballots. With less than two weeks before Election Day, voting-related conspiracy theories are surging, and state and local election officials are having to spend their time knocking them down while also trying to run a presidential election. UPCOMING by 1 p.m.

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NATIONAL

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ELECTION OFFICIALS-THREATS — A man accused of making repeated threats to kill the top election officials in Colorado and Arizona as well as judges and federal law enforcement agents is expected to plead guilty in federal court on Wednesday. SENT: developing from 12 p.m. hearing.

SEXUAL MISCONDUCT-HARVEY WEINSTEIN — Harvey Weinstein is due back in court in New York for a hearing ahead of his retrial on rape charges stemming from his landmark #MeToo case. SENT; developing from 10 a.m. hearing.

HURRICANE MILTON-FLORIDA SNOWBIRDS — Hurricane Milton’s devastating landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast hit one of the most popular areas for temporary residents who spend the winter months living in the Sunshine State. SENT: 860 words, photos.

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INTERNATIONAL

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AUSTRIA-DEMOCRACY UNDER THREAT — Ever since Austria held elections last month, the prospect of the country’s first far-right led government since the end of World War II has raised concern among its allies. Western governments share intelligence with Austria, including the tip-off that foiled a plot to attack one of Taylor Swift’s concerts in Vienna earlier this year. All Austria’s political parties have maintained an openness to Russia for decades — part of a traditional foreign policy of neutrality — but none more so than the far-right Freedom Party. SENT: 1,270 words, photos.

CAMBODIA-CROCODILES — The hatching of clutches of critically endangered Siamese crocodiles in Cambodia is an unlikely comeback, aided by an even unlikelier ally. Crocodile farmers who had nearly hunted the species to extinction in the first place now play a vital role in providing purebred reptiles for captive breeding. SENT: 1,030 words, photos.

ASIA STORM — Torrential rain set off by an approaching storm has swamped eastern Philippine cities and towns in widespread floods that trapped people, some on their roofs, and sparked frantic appeals for rescue boats and trucks. SENT: 670 words, photos, video. With TROPICAL WEATHER-PACIFIC — Forecasters say Hurricane Kristy has strengthened into a Category 2 storm in the Pacific Ocean and is expected to remain away from land as it quickly grows more powerful. SENT: 160 words, photos.

KUWAIT-CALL OF DUTY — The tiny Mideast nation of Kuwait has banned the release of the video game “Call of Duty: Black Ops 6,” which features the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and is set in part in the 1990s Gulf War. SENT: 400 words, photo.

MALAYSIA-CHILD SEX ABUSE — Twenty-two members of an Islamic business group, including its CEO, have been charged for being part of an organized crime group after hundreds of children believed to have been sexually abused were rescued from welfare homes linked to the group. SENT: 370 words, photos.

RUSSIA-BRICS — Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is hosting China’s Xi Jinping, India’s Narendra Modi and other world leaders at a summit of the BRICS bloc of developing economies, part of Kremlin efforts to challenge Western global clout. SENT: 500 words, photos.

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CLIMATE AND ENVIROMENT

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CLIMATE CARBON REMOVAL — The nascent industry for removing carbon dioxide directly from the air is calling on the U.S. government to adopt standards and regulations to boost confidence in the business. SENT: 810 words, photos.

INDONESIA-DEFORESTATION-MINING — A report by the World Resources Institute shows that rapidly expanding mining operations are causing widespread destruction of tropical primary rainforests and protected areas, raising carbon emissions and displacing Indigenous communities. SENT: 650 words, photos,

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BUSINESS

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BOEING EARNS-STRIKE — Boeing reported a massive loss of more than $6 billion in its third quarter as company officials wait to learn whether striking workers are going back to their jobs. SENT; developing from evening vote.

AMERICAN AIRLINES-WHEELCHAIRS — The U.S. government is fining American Airlines $50 million for failing to provide wheelchair assistance to passengers with disabilities and damaging thousands of wheelchairs over a five-year period. SENT: 450 words, photo

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SPORTS

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LAKERS-LEBRON & BRONNY — LeBron James and Bronny James became the first father and son to play in the NBA together when they checked into the game together in the second quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers’ season opener. SENT: 1,240 words, photos.

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HOW TO REACH US

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The Nerve Center 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 AP Newsroom. For access to AP Newsroom and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport@ap.org or call 844-777-2006.

A zoo member holds a Siamese crocodile in the hatchling nursery at Phnom Tamao Zoo in Takeo province, Cambodia, on Aug. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) and guard Bronny James (9) are interviewed after an NBA basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, meets Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday Oct. 23, 2024. (Nathan Howard/Pool via AP)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday there is evidence that North Korea has sent troops to Russia, as South Korea's spy chief told lawmakers that 3,000 North Korean troops are in the country receiving training on drones and other equipment before being deployed to battlefields in Ukraine.

Speaking to reporters during a visit to Rome, Austin said “What exactly they are doing? Left to be seen. These are things that we need to sort out,” according to a video posted by the Washington Post.

If the troops join the war in Ukraine on Russia’s side, it will be “a very, very serious issue,” Austin said, adding it would have an impact in Europe and in the Indo-Pacific region.

South Korean intelligence first publicized reports that the Russian navy had taken 1,500 North Korean special warfare troops to Russia this month, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had earlier said his government had intelligence that 10,000 North Korea soldiers were being prepared to join the invading Russian forces.

The U.S. and NATO had not previously formally confirmed North Korea’s reported troop dispatch, but have warned of the danger of such a development if true. Russia and North Korea have so far denied the troop movements.

South Korean National Intelligence Service Director Cho Tae-yong told lawmakers Wednesday that another 1,500 North Korean troops have entered Russia, according to lawmaker Park Sunwon, who attended a closed-door briefing by Cho.

Cho told lawmakers that his agency assessed that North Korea aims to deploy a total of 10,000 troops to Russia by December, Park told reporters.

Park cited Cho as saying the 3,000 North Korean soldiers sent to Russia have been split among multiple military bases and are in training. Cho told lawmakers that NIS believes they have yet to be deployed in battle, according to Park.

Speaking jointly with Park about the NIS briefing, lawmaker Lee Seong Kweun said that the NIS found that the Russian military is now teaching those North Korean soldiers how to use military equipment such as drones.

Lee cited the NIS chief as saying Russian instructors have high opinions of the morale and physical strength of the North Korean soldiers but think they will eventually suffer a heavy causalities because they lack an understanding of modern warfare. Lee, citing Cho, said Russia is recruiting a large number of interpreters.

Lee said NIS has detected signs that North Korea is relocating family members of soldiers chosen to be sent to Russia to special sites to isolate them.

The NIS chief told lawmakers that North Korea hasn't disclosed its troop dispatch to its own people. But there are rumors that the news is spreading to local residents, including those whose loved ones have been assigned Russian tours, Lee said, citing the NIS.

Ukraine’s Military Intelligence Directorate head, Kyrylo Budanov, told the online military news outlet The War Zone that North Korean troops will arrive to Russia's Kursk region today to help Russian troops fighting off a Ukrainian incursion.

North Korea and Russia, embroiled in separate confrontations with the West, have been sharply boosting their cooperation in the past two years. In June, they signed a major defense deal requiring both countries to use all available means to provide immediate military assistance if either is attacked.

The NIS said last week that North Korea had sent more than 13,000 containers of artillery, missiles and other conventional arms to Russia since August 2023 to replenish its dwindling weapons stockpiles.

Reports that the North is sending troops to Russia stoked security jitters in South Korea. South Korean officials worry that Russia may reward North Korea by giving it sophisticated weapons technologies that could boost the North’s nuclear and missile programs that target South Korea.

South Korea said Tuesday it would consider supplying weapons to Ukraine in response to the North's reported troop dispatch. South Korea has shipped humanitarian and financial support to Ukraine, but it has so far avoided directly supplying arms to Ukraine in line with its policy of not supplying weapons to countries actively engaged in conflicts.

North Korea has 1.2 million troops, one of the largest standing armies in the world, but it hasn’t fought in large-scale conflicts since the 1950-53 Korean War. Many experts question how much North Korean troops would help Russia, citing a shortage of battle experience. They say North Korea wants to get Russian economic support and its help to modernize the North's outdated conventional weapons systems as well as its high-tech weapons technology transfers.

Associated Press writer Illia Novikov in Kyiv, Ukraine contributed to this report.

FILE - South Korean mechanized unit personnel parade with their armored vehicles during the media day for the 76th anniversary of Armed Forces Day at Seoul air base in Seongnam, South Korea, on Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un smile during their meeting at the Pyongyang Sunan International Airport outside Pyongyang, North Korea, on June 19, 2024. (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - Soldiers march in a parade for the 70th anniversary of North Korea's founding day in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Sept. 9, 2018. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, File)

A TV screen shows an image of soldiers believed to be from North Korea stand in line to receive supplies from Russia during a news program at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)