NPR 2011-02-04

Lawlessness is spreading in central Cairo where protesters for and against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak have been engaged in running street battles, allowing businesses to be looted and buildings torched, all this with apparently¹ little intervention² from soldiers. Pro-Mubarak mobs are turning on foreign journalists. NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro says the attacks stretch beyond Tahrir Square.

The NPR group which I was with, we were in our residential³ neighborhood, no one near the epicenter of fighting, and we were just trying to talk to people about daily life, and suddenly we were surrounded, we were asked for our identifications, we were accused of being spies and infiltrators. And then it got violent, and what had turned into a mob started beating a colleague of mine. We tried to flee to the car, we were chased, and the crowd was extremely angry, and eventually, the army was called and they escorted us to safety. Our experience was pretty typical today of what many journalists have been seeing across the city.

NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro on the dramatic events unfolding in Cairo. More people are joining the movement to oust⁴ President Mubarak. And NPR's Eric Westervelt says talks between opposing factions⁵ have apparently stalled.

Egypt's Vice⁶ President Omar Suleiman says he held a dialog with the country's political parties today to try to end 10 days of protest against President Mubarak's regime. But the talks went nowhere. And the liberal opposition⁷ Wafd Party today suspended talks indefinitely after escalating⁸ violence here Wednesday and overnight that it said was backed by the Mubarak regime. Also today, another opposition figure, Nobel laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, said his group and the hugely influential⁹ Muslim Brotherhood¹⁰ will not enter into talks with the government on ending protest until President Mubarak resigns. On Tuesday, Mubarak said he will not step down until after his term ends in September. Vice President Suleiman also Thursday rejected calls by the US and others to accelerate political change in Egypt. He said, 'intervention in our internal affairs is strange, unacceptable, and we will not allow it.' Eric Westervelt, NPR News, Cairo.

In the US, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords' husband says he is a big believer in faith ever since his wife survived the shooting massacre¹¹ in Tucson last month. Astronaut Captain Mark Kelly at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. today.

"Everyday, she gets a little bit better. And the neurosurgeons and the urologists tell me that that's a great sign. The slope of that curve is very important."

Giffords survived a gunshot wound to the head in an apparent assassination¹² attempt. She was among 19 people shot, six people died.

Here is the latest from Wall Street; the Dow was down six points at 12,036. This is NPR News.

The Egyptian uprising that was inspired by a coup¹³ in Tunisia weeks earlier fueled similar revolts in various parts of the Arab world. And as a result, government reshuffling. The latest involves Algeria where the state news agency is reporting the government is lifting a state of emergency that has been in effect since 1992, following a civil war between Islamists and security forces. NPR's Frank Langfitt reports that an opposition party in Khartoum is now reporting that Sudanese security forces have arrested 10 reporters in advance of planned protests in that country.

Inspired by their brothers in Tunisia and Egypt, students in northern Sudan have been calling for regime change and a reduction in prices. Security forces have arrested more than 100 people. Human Rights Watch says many of those have been beaten. There is widespread frustration¹⁴ with the Sudanese economy where incomes are low and prices are shockingly high. To make matters worse, Sudan is poised¹⁵ to lose most of its oil reserves when the South secedes¹⁶ in July. But observers do not expect this week's protests to be as effective as those in Egypt or Tunisia. The ruling National Congress Party appears to be in control for now. It has a vast spy network and faces a fragmented opposition. Frank Langfitt, NPR News, Nairobi.

US retailers¹⁷ are reporting stronger-than-expected revenue gains in January despite the snowstorms. Chains such as Costco and Limited Brands and Gap rose more than 1% in early trading. However, stocks are still moving lower. Last check, the Dow was down 3 points at 12,039, NASDAQ down slightly at 2,749, and the S&P 500 also down one at 1,303.

1 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

2 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

3 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

4 oust   

vt.剥夺，取代，驱逐

参考例句：

• The committee wanted to oust him from the union.委员会想把他从工会中驱逐出去。
• The leaders have been ousted from power by nationalists.这些领导人被民族主义者赶下了台。

5 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

6 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

7 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

8 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

9 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

10 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

11 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

12 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

13 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

14 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

15 poised   

a.摆好姿势不动的

参考例句：

• The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
• Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。

16 secedes   

v.脱离，退出( secede的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

17 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。