英语听力精选进阶版 8196

President Obama has announced that his veteransaffair secretary has resigned after a scathing¹ reportfound widespread failings in healthcare treatmentfor retired² US service men and women. RajiniVaidyanathan reports from Washington.

President Obama said it was with considerableregret that he was accepting the resignation of theman responsible for the welfare of military veteransGeneral Eric Shinseki. It follows a report that showed1,700 veterans in Phoenix⁴, Arizona who've been trying to get a primary care appointmenthaven't ever been placed on a waiting list. Others had spent months instead of weeks waiting tobe seen by a doctor. And there were claims as many as 40 veterans may have died becausethey didn't get care.

The authorities in Libya say they are being overwhelmed by huge increase in the number ofpeople trying to enter Europe illegally. It's thought as many as 300,000 people may be waitingin Libya to cross the Mediterranean⁵. The Libyan coast guard has told the BBC that many aredying on the journey. Paul Adams reports.

The grim scenes in Libya lie at the heart of a complex web of migration⁶ routes all of whichhave Europe as their destination. According to Frontex, the European agency responsible forborder security, 42,000 refugees and other migrants entered Europe in the first 4 months ofthis year, 2/3 of them crossed from Libya. But a month later, the total is much higher. TheItalian government says more than 39,000 people have now reached its shores. This means theoverall total is now around 60,000, and this is before the peak migration period over thesummer.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said his country intends to play a greater more proactiverole in the security of Asia. In a major foreign policy speech delivered in Singapore, the primeminister promised Japan would give its utmost supports to other East Asian countries, andmaintain the freedom of navigation at the sea and the air. Mr. Abe recently announced thathe wanted to reinterpret Japan's pacifist constitution to give its armed forces more power.

Thailand's new military ruler says he does not expect to hold elections for at least a year. In atelevised address to the nation, General Prayuth Chan-ocha said time was needed to achievereconciliation, draft a new constitution and mend Thailand's democratic system. GeneralPrayuth who overthrew⁷ the government last week, said all sides had to cooperate and stopprotesting in order for the plan to succeed.

A traditional Muslim ruler has been killed in northern Nigeria by suspected members of theIslamist group Boko Haram. The emir of Gwoza was in a convoy⁸ heading towards the funeral ofanother emir in Gombe state when he was ambushed⁹. In another incident, a resident of thevillage of Koma near the border with Cameroon told the BBC that at least 17 local people werekilled when the village was raided by militants¹⁰ on Thursday.

World News from the BBC.

A federal judge in Argentina has summoned vice³ president Amado Boudou to appear in court inJuly to defend himself in a corruption¹¹ case. Mr. Boudou is seen as a strong contender in nextyear's presidential election. Leonardo Rocha has more details.

The case has been under investigation¹² since 2010 when Mr. Boudou is alleged¹³ to have used thefront man to buy a bankrupt printing company. He's accused of using his influence as theeconomy minister at the time to grant the company illegal tax breaks in a lucrative¹⁴ contract toprint Argentina's bank notes. Mr. Boudou is due to appear in court on July 15th. He hasrejected calls from the opposition¹⁵ to step down and says he will prove his innocence¹⁶.

Police in Malawi have shot dead a protester after clashing with dozens of people who weredemanding a recount of the disputed election. Malawi's electoral commission has told thehigh court it's not yet in a position to announce the result as it examines alleged irregularities.

The Indian state of Uttar Pradesh where 2 teenage girls were gang-raped¹⁷ and then hanged froma tree has pledged to set up a special fast-track court to try the suspects. Two policemen havebeen sacked and charged with criminal conspiracy¹⁸ for failing to pursue the case. ChuckSundroy Majimda reports from Delhi.

There's wave of anger at the police who took 12 hours to respond when the parents of thevictims approached them to report their girls were missing. The father of one of the girls saysthe police refused to help him. The girls aged¹⁹ 14 and 15, had gone to a nearby field becausethey had no toilet at home. They were found hanged from a mango tree the next morning. Apost-mortem examination confirmed that they had been raped multiple times.

Stock markets in the United States have risen to a record high. The Dow Jones IndustrialAverage closed the day at nearly 17,000 points. The rise came despite figures on Thursdayshowing that the American economy shrank by 1% in the first 3 months of this year.

1 scathing   

adj.（言词、文章）严厉的，尖刻的；不留情的adv.严厉地，尖刻地v.伤害，损害（尤指使之枯萎）( scathe的现在分词)

参考例句：

• a scathing attack on the new management 针对新的管理层的猛烈抨击
• Her speech was a scathing indictment of the government's record on crime. 她的演讲强烈指责了政府在犯罪问题上的表现。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

3 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。

4 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

5 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

6 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

7 overthrew   

overthrow的过去式

参考例句：

• The people finally rose up and overthrew the reactionary regime. 人们终于起来把反动的政权推翻了。
• They overthrew their King. 他们推翻了国王。

8 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

9 ambushed   

v.埋伏( ambush的过去式和过去分词 )；埋伏着

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The military vehicles were ambushed. 军车遭到伏击。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

12 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

13 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

14 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

15 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。

16 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

17 raped   

v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的过去式和过去分词 )；强奸

参考例句：

• A young woman was brutally raped in her own home. 一名年轻女子在自己家中惨遭强暴。 来自辞典例句
• We got stick together, or we will be having our women raped. 我们得团结一致，不然我们的妻女就会遭到蹂躏。 来自辞典例句

18 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。

19 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。