英国新闻听力 94

The commander of the Sri Lankan army has suggested that the country's civil war is nearly over. Lietenant General Sarath Fonseka was speaking on national television after his troops captured Mullaittivu, the last major town held by the Tamil Tiger rebels. General Fonseka said it was a challenging military operation.

"To get to Mullaittivu, our valiant¹ forces went about 40 kilometers forward from Welioya. It was a very difficult move. We got there after taking the Mullaittivu jungle. We were able to surmount² fortifications made of earth and trenches³, and capture Mullaittivu after a battle lasting⁴ a month."

There has been no word from the Tamil Tigers and there are no independent reports from the front lines.

The Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says he's setting up a special legal team to defend Israeli soldiers who might face allegations of war crimes committed during the campaign in Gaza. United Nations officials have demanded independent investigations⁵ into whether war crimes were committed. But Mr. Olmert said Israel would stand by its soldiers.

"The commanders and soldiers that were sent on the task in Gaza should know that they are safe from any tribunal, and that the State of Israel will assist them in this issue and protect them as they protected us with their bodies during the military operation in Gaza."

Palestinian officials say 1,300 people were killed during the offensive.

European Union foreign ministers have urged Palestinian factions⁶ to unite, so that border crossings in the Gaza Strip can be opened and aid distributed. Luxemburg's Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said that without a Palestinian consensus⁷ government, humanitarian⁸ aid couldn't be organized. The British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said that Palestinian people had to speak with a single voice. The ministers meeting in Brussels also said Egypt should do more to prevent weapons being smuggled⁹ to Hamas militants¹⁰ in Gaza.

President Barack Obama's top aides have been explaining his proposals for an 825-billion-dollar plan to stimulate¹¹ the US economy. Speaking on Sunday at a television program, his vice¹² President Joe Biden said they would begin to promote economic growth by, as he put it, getting money out of the door as rapidly as possible. But the Republican leader in the House of Representatives John Boehner said he wouldn't support the plan without significant changes.

"Republicans believe that we have a difficult economy. We believe that we need an economic rescue plan that helps American families and small businesses, and one that will work. And right now, given the concerns we have over the size of this package and all of the spending in this package, we don't think it's gonna work. And so, if it's the plan that I see today, put me down in the 'no' column."

World News from the BBC.

Scientists in Denmark say global warming could create dead zones in the ocean that would then be devoid¹³ of most marine¹⁴ life for up to 2,000 years. The scientists used computer modeling to simulate long-term climate change. Saj Chowdhury reports.

Under the worst scenario¹⁵, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the air would triple by the end of this century, producing a temperature rise of up to seven degrees Celsius¹⁶. The oceans would get warmer and water circulation would slow down. These would bring about a dramatic drop in oxygen levels in vast ocean tracts¹⁷, producing so-called dead zones that could be unable to support fish, shellfish and other higher forms of marine life.

The polls have closed in Bolivia after a referendum that could transform the standing¹⁸ of the country's poor indigenous¹⁹ majority. Election observers said the voting had been largely peaceful, despite staunch opposition²⁰ from people of mixed-race and European descent. Crowds are gathering²¹ in La Paz to hear what they expect to be a victory speech from President Evo Morales, who is of indigenous descent himself. But the opposition politician, Jorge "Tuto" Quiroga, said he was concerned a yes vote would lead to the abuse of the constitution by President Morales.

"It would be naive²² and extreme to think that the government will respect the clauses of a new constitution when he's never respected to the previous ones. And what he has announced clearly and loudly that they will interpret the result as a blank check by which is to govern by the creed²³ without a constitutional tribunal, without a congress, and without respecting current legislation."

An avalanche²⁴ in northeastern Turkey has killed ten climbers on Mount Zigana. Rescue officials said that a party of 17 people had been hit by a wall of snow. Five escaped on skis and two were pulled out from the snow alive. A survivor²⁵ had said that the climbers had been walking in a single file in deep snow when they were swept away.

1 valiant   

adj.勇敢的，英勇的；n.勇士，勇敢的人

参考例句：

• He had the fame of being very valiant.他的勇敢是出名的。
• Despite valiant efforts by the finance minister,inflation rose to 36%.尽管财政部部长采取了一系列果决措施，通货膨胀率还是涨到了36%。

2 surmount   

vt.克服；置于…顶上

参考例句：

• We have many problems to surmount before we can start the project.我们得克服许多困难才能著手做这项工作。
• We are fully confident that we can surmount these difficulties.我们完全相信我们能够克服这些困难。

3 trenches   

深沟，地沟( trench的名词复数 )； 战壕

参考例句：

• life in the trenches 第一次世界大战期间的战壕生活
• The troops stormed the enemy's trenches and fanned out across the fields. 部队猛攻敌人的战壕，并在田野上呈扇形散开。

4 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

5 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

6 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

7 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

8 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

9 smuggled   

水货

参考例句：

• The customs officer confiscated the smuggled goods. 海关官员没收了走私品。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Those smuggled goods have been detained by the port office. 那些走私货物被港务局扣押了。 来自互联网

10 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

11 stimulate   

vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋

参考例句：

• Your encouragement will stimulate me to further efforts.你的鼓励会激发我进一步努力。
• Success will stimulate the people for fresh efforts.成功能鼓舞人们去作新的努力。

12 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。

13 devoid   

adj.全无的，缺乏的

参考例句：

• He is completely devoid of humour.他十分缺乏幽默。
• The house is totally devoid of furniture.这所房子里什么家具都没有。

14 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

15 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

16 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。

17 tracts   

大片土地( tract的名词复数 )； 地带； （体内的）道； （尤指宣扬宗教、伦理或政治的）短文

参考例句：

• vast tracts of forest 大片大片的森林
• There are tracts of desert in Australia. 澳大利亚有大片沙漠。

18 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

19 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

20 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。

21 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

22 naive   

adj.幼稚的，轻信的；天真的

参考例句：

• It's naive of you to believe he'll do what he says.相信他会言行一致，你未免太单纯了。
• Don't be naive.The matter is not so simple.你别傻乎乎的。事情没有那么简单。

23 creed   

n.信条；信念，纲领

参考例句：

• They offended against every article of his creed.他们触犯了他的每一条戒律。
• Our creed has always been that business is business.我们的信条一直是公私分明。

24 avalanche   

n.雪崩，大量涌来

参考例句：

• They were killed by an avalanche in the Swiss Alps.他们在瑞士阿尔卑斯山的一次雪崩中罹难。
• Higher still the snow was ready to avalanche.在更高处积雪随时都会崩塌。

25 survivor   

n.生存者，残存者，幸存者

参考例句：

• The sole survivor of the crash was an infant.这次撞车的惟一幸存者是一个婴儿。
• There was only one survivor of the plane crash.这次飞机失事中只有一名幸存者。