NPR 2011-05-29

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Nancy Lyons.

President Obama says the US must always leave room to throw financial and moral support behind nations fighting for freedoms. NPR's Scott Horsley reports on his last stop on a six-day European tour, the president cited Poland for being a shining example of how democratic change can transform a country.

While in Warsaw, President Obama met with some veterans of Poland's Solidarity¹ reform movement, some of whom are already consulting with democratic activists² in the Middle East, Mr. Obama calls Poland a "living example" of what's possible for newly democratizing countries like Egypt and Tunisia.

"It has gone through what many countries want to now go through and has done so successfully."

Mr. Obama had dinner on Friday with a number of Central and Eastern European leaders. He said they expressed gratitude³ for America's support during their own transitions to democracy. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Warsaw.

In northeastern Afghanistan, a suicide bomber⁴ killed six people, including two NATO soldiers and two top Afghan government officials, during a meeting inside a government building. NPR's Ahmad Shafi says ten others were wounded, including a top German NATO commander.

The explosion happened as officials along with a team from the German service members of a NATO reconstruction⁵ team were meeting at the governor's compound in Takhar province in northeastern Afghanistan. A local government official says the chief of police for Takhar province along with a prominent anti-Taliban government official, General Dawood Dawood, were killed on spot. The governor of Takhar province says as well as scores of local government officials have been wounded. Ahmad Shafi, NPR News, Kabul.

The death toll⁶ keeps rising in Joplin, Missouri with at least 139 known dead. That makes it the deadliest single tornado⁷ since 1950, based on figures from the National Weather Service. Joplin Mayor Mike Woolston tells CBS's "Early Show" residents are already starting to rebuild.

"I believe it was Thursday morning, less than 96 hours after the event, I actually saw a building going back up. Walls were up. They were putting up roof rafters. And I believe it was yesterday morning, our public school district announced that they had begun reconstruction of rebuilding."

One of the most delicate jobs is to identify those bodies that have been recovered. A federal team of forensic⁸ experts is using scientific methods instead of visual IDs.

A record snowfall in California's Sierra Nevada is melting fast and, according to the Associated Press, Yosemite Falls, the nation's tallest, is spewing enough water to fill a gasoline tanker⁹ truck every two seconds. The peak melt is expected in mid-June and tourists will see more water and hear more thunderous sound as the water pounds Yosemite's granite¹⁰ walls.

Endeavour's astronauts are taking care some last-minute space station chores before packing up to come home. Today, they worked on an air purifier on the station. The space shuttle and its crew will be undocking from the space station tomorrow night.

This is NPR News.

After a 40-year blockade of its border with Gaza, Egypt says it is now easing restrictions¹¹. The move will allow thousands of Palestinians to move freely in and out of the area. The blockade of the Palestinian territory by Israel and Egypt was intended to isolate¹² Hamas. One Hamas leader says the change is a unique move and a positive development.

Security is being tightened¹³ in Serbia ahead of a nationalist rally scheduled for tomorrow. It's being led by those opposed to extraditing former Bosnian Serbian military commander Ratko Mladic. NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reports Mladic could be extradited to the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague as early as Monday.

If a judge rejects Mladic's appeal, the extradition¹⁴ could take place Monday. He's indicted¹⁵ for genocide in the massacre¹⁶ of some 8,000 men and boys at Srebrenica and the siege of Sarajevo during the 1992-1995 Bosnian War. Mladic's lawyer said his client knows he'll be extradited but would like to recover first. The defense¹⁷ team and Mladic's family says he suffers from several health problems. The lawyer told reporters his client is in a state of confusion. Police chief Ivica Dacic said police will closely monitor a rally planned for Sunday in Belgrade. But he added that the situation in Serbia is stable. Since Mladic's arrest Thursday, groups of soccer hooligans have rallied in city squares, calling Mladic a "national hero", but were quickly dispersed¹⁸ by police. Sylvia Poggioli, NPR News, Belgrade.

An American is now free after being held by North Korea for six months. South Korean press reports say Eddie Jun had been accused of proselytizing¹⁹.

1 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

2 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。

4 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

5 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

6 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

7 tornado   

n.飓风，龙卷风

参考例句：

• A tornado whirled into the town last week.龙卷风上周袭击了这座城市。
• The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

8 forensic   

adj.法庭的，雄辩的

参考例句：

• The report included his interpretation of the forensic evidence.该报告包括他对法庭证据的诠释。
• The judge concluded the proceeding on 10:30 Am after one hour of forensic debate.经过近一个小时的法庭辩论后，法官于10时30分宣布休庭。

9 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。

10 granite   

adj.花岗岩，花岗石

参考例句：

• They squared a block of granite.他们把一块花岗岩加工成四方形。
• The granite overlies the older rocks.花岗岩躺在磨损的岩石上面。

11 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

12 isolate   

vt.使孤立，隔离

参考例句：

• Do not isolate yourself from others.不要把自己孤立起来。
• We should never isolate ourselves from the masses.我们永远不能脱离群众。

13 tightened   

收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧

参考例句：

• The rope holding the boat suddenly tightened and broke. 系船的绳子突然绷断了。
• His index finger tightened on the trigger but then relaxed again. 他的食指扣住扳机，然后又松开了。

14 extradition   

n.引渡（逃犯）

参考例句：

• The smuggler is in prison tonight,awaiting extradition to Britain.这名走私犯今晚在监狱，等待引渡到英国。
• He began to trouble concerning the extradition laws.他开始费尽心思地去想关于引渡法的问题。

15 indicted   

控告，起诉( indict的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The senator was indicted for murder. 那位参议员被控犯谋杀罪。
• He was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of murder. 他被大陪审团以两项谋杀罪名起诉。

16 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！

17 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

18 dispersed   

adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的

参考例句：

• The clouds dispersed themselves. 云散了。
• After school the children dispersed to their homes. 放学后，孩子们四散回家了。

19 proselytizing   

v.（使）改变宗教信仰[政治信仰、意见等]，使变节( proselytize的现在分词 )

参考例句：