英语听力精选进阶版 7430

The Portuguese¹ parliament has rejected controversial austerity measures put forward by the government to rescue the country's ailing² economy. The Prime Minister Jose Socrates, who leads a minority government, has said he would stand down if the vote went against him. Chris Morris has the details.

The minority government in Portugal had passed three previous packages of austerity measures with opposition³ support. But this was a step too far, a mix of sweeping⁴ cuts in public spending and pensions, and a rise in taxes, applauded in Brussels but rejected in Lisbon. Now Portugal looks set to head for early elections, a period of political drift, and immense pressure to accept a multi-billion-euro bailout from eurozone funds.

The commander of British aircraft flying missions over Libya says Western forces now control the skies there. Air Vice⁵ Marshal Greg Bagwell said they could now operate with near impunity⁶ as Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's air force is no longer existing as a fighting unit. The American military chief for the Libyan mission, Rear Admiral Gerard Hueber, said that they were putting pressure on Colonel Gaddafi's ground forces, which continue to threaten cities.

"There's widespread reporting indicating Libyan ground forces are engaged in fighting in a number of cities, putting innocent civilians⁷ in grave danger. In Ajdabiya, regime forces intensified⁹ combat in, into and out of the city. In Misrata, regime forces continue to clear opposition, increase combat operations and target civilian⁸ populations in the city."

Egypt's most senior prosecutor¹⁰ has sanctioned a criminal trial against the former interior minister for the shooting of protesters during popular protests in late January. More than 350 people died. From Cairo, Jonathan Head.

Leaders of the uprising have repeatedly called for someone to be held to account for those deaths. Now five senior officials, including the former Interior Minister Habib al-Adly, have been charged and will go to trial for ordering their men to open fire on demonstrators. That should go some way to satisfying the protest movement. The interior minister is near the top of their list of those they hold responsible for the violence. But the committee that investigated his role recommended another name to add to the charge sheet - that of Mr Mubarak himself, who hasn't been seen in public since he resigned.

The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed¹¹ that Israel would, as he put it, respond "aggressively, responsibly and wisely" to a bomb attack at a bus stop in Jerusalem. A woman was killed and about 30 other people were injured, some critically. US and Palestinian leaders have condemned¹² the bombing as a terrorist attack. Hamas, which controls Gaza, said it would seek to lower growing tensions with Israel, prompted by militant¹³ Palestinian rocket attacks in recent days and Israeli reprisals¹⁴.

World News from the BBC

An American soldier has pleaded guilty to taking part in killing¹⁵ three unarmed civilians in southern Afghanistan last year. Corporal Jeremy Morlock was one of five US soldiers accused of the killings¹⁶ in Kandahar province and of conspiracy¹⁷ to plant weapons on the dead to make it appear that they were enemy combatants. He's received a 24-year prison term.

There are reports of further violence in the Syrian city of Deraa following a police raid on a mosque¹⁸ that left several people dead. Early on Wednesday, Syrian police stormed the Omari mosque, which had become a focal point for anti-government protests. Owen Bennett-Jones has more.

Protests in Deraa have been going on since Friday, and residents say the main mosque was being used as a first aid post to treat people hurt in clashes with the police. Then in the early hours of this morning, the security forces cut the electricity supply to the mosque and attacked, killing six people. When young men took to the streets to protest against that action, the security forces once again opened fire, killing nine more. The official news agency in Syria tells a very different story. It says armed gangs of criminals have been attacking innocent bystanders.

And some news just in on our lead story, we've just heard that the Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates has resigned.Bolivia has said it will take Chile to international court to try to recover access to the Pacific Ocean, which it lost in a war more than a century ago. The Bolivian President Evo Morales said Chile had failed to respond to a deadline he'd set for progress in negotiations¹⁹. He said Bolivia would continue dialogue with Chile while seeking a legal solution to its landlocked status.

One of Hollywood's biggest stars, Elizabeth Taylor, has died of congestive heart failure in Los Angeles. She was 79. Elizabeth Taylor, who was British-born, made her names in films such as National Velvet²⁰, Cleopatra and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf.

1 Portuguese   

n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语

参考例句：

• They styled their house in the Portuguese manner.他们仿照葡萄牙的风格设计自己的房子。
• Her family is Portuguese in origin.她的家族是葡萄牙血统。

2 ailing   

v.生病

参考例句：

• They discussed the problems ailing the steel industry. 他们讨论了困扰钢铁工业的问题。
• She looked after her ailing father. 她照顾有病的父亲。

3 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。

4 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

5 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。

6 impunity   

n.(惩罚、损失、伤害等的)免除

参考例句：

• You will not escape with impunity.你不可能逃脱惩罚。
• The impunity what compulsory insurance sets does not include escapement.交强险规定的免责范围不包括逃逸。

7 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

8 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

9 intensified   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Violence intensified during the night. 在夜间暴力活动加剧了。
• The drought has intensified. 旱情加剧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

11 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

12 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

13 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

14 reprisals   

n.报复（行为）( reprisal的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They did not want to give evidence for fear of reprisals. 他们因为害怕报复而不想作证。
• They took bloody reprisals against the leaders. 他们对领导进行了血腥的报复。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

16 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

17 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

18 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

19 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

20 velvet   

n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的

参考例句：

• This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
• The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。