VOA慢速英语2014 US, Arab Allies Bomb Militant Targets in Syria

 

US, Arab Allies Bomb Militant¹ Targets in Syria

The United States bombed many Islamic militant positions in Syria for the first time on Tuesday.  Officials said the attacks were "very successful" against two leading terrorist groups in the area.

Five Arab countries cooperated with the U.S. to hit Islamic State group and al-Qaida targets, including areas along the northern border.  This is where a militant offensive last week caused more than 130,000 Kurds to flee into Turkey.

Separately, the U.S. launched missiles at al-Qaida members in Syria.  They form the so-called Khorasan group. President Barack Obama said Khorasan was planning an "imminent²" attack on the U.S.

President Obama said Tuesday's actions were aimed at destroying terrorists' "safe havens³."

At UN, Calls for Global Effort Against Warming

President Obama and other world leaders are calling for a new international agreement to protect the Earth from dangerous greenhouse gases.

Mr. Obama spoke⁴ to delegates at the United Nations Climate Summit Tuesday.  He said the United States takes responsibility for its part in damaging the environment. But he said all nations must act together to fight the worsening problem of climate change.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon opened the meeting.  He called for the world's nations to find a "new course" to protect the environment from carbon releases.

On Monday, the World Bank announced a new effort for policies that encourage a move to cleaner energy technologies. It said 73 national and 22 local governments, along with about 1,000 companies, are involved in the project.

CDC: Ebola Could Infect 1.4 Million by January

U.S. researchers say between 500,000 and 1.4 million people in West Africa could be infected with the Ebola virus by January.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the predictions. They are based on a model that shows cases will double every few weeks in Liberia and Sierra Leone.  Officials also believe that the current numbers of cases is higher than those estimated by the World Health Organization.

The CDC said its higher estimate will become "very unlikely" once new efforts to fight Ebola are put in place. This includes an increase in treatment centers and a U.S. promise to send 3,000 troops to the affected⁵ area.

Officials are making plans to test experimental Ebola drugs in West Africa for the first time. There is no cure or vaccine⁶ for the virus, which has infected more than 5,600 people. More than 2,800 have died. Most of the cases have been in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.  

1 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。

2 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

3 havens   

n.港口，安全地方( haven的名词复数 )v.港口，安全地方( haven的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Your twenty havens would back out at the last minute anyhow. 你那二十个避难所到了最后一分钟也要不认帐。 来自辞典例句
• Using offshore havens to avoid taxes and investor protections. 使用海面的港口避免税和投资者保护。 来自互联网

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。