Hourly News 每日新闻 2014-01-29

China, S. Korea protest againt Japans textbook revision over disputed islands

Both China and South Korea are strongly protesting Japan's announced revisions to the nation's junior and senior highschool textbooks.

Japan's education ministry¹ has announced new teaching guidelines that will emphasise² Japan's view on islands disputed between Japan, South Korea and China. 

The revision will state that the disputed islets are "integral territories of Japan".

The Chinese Foreign Ministry has issued a formal protest, urging Tokyo to "stop provocations³".

The Chinese side is urging Japan to respect historic realities, stop provocations, and teach the younger generation a correct historical perspective.

It's also demanding Japan make real and practical efforts to improve relations with neighboring countries.

 

U.S. envoy⁴ nominee⁵ pledges to strengthen China-U.S. ties if confirmed

US President Barack Obama's choice to be the next US ambassador to China has testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

72-year old Montana Democratic Senator Max Baucus has told his confirmation⁶ hearing he will work hard to improve the China-US relationship, describing it as one of the most important bilateral⁷ relationships in the world.

He's widely expected to breeze through his confirmation hearings.

Baucus is due to replace Gary Locke, who will be leaving in March after becoming the first Chinese-American to take up the post of ambassador to China two-and-a-half years ago.

 

Syrian peace talks on hold for the day

Tense negotiations⁸ between the Syrian government and the opposition⁹ have broken off earlier than planned on Tuesday.

The fifth day of talks at the United Nations offices in Geneva had been focused on the transfer of power and helping¹⁰ besieged¹¹ parts of the Syrian city of Homs. 

UN mediator¹² Lakhdar Brahimi says despite the difficulties, the talks will continue.

President Bashar Assad's role in any transitional government was reportedly a red line during the negotiations and left vague. 

Tuesday's talks were cut off early to give time for the Syrian government delegation¹³ to make its proposal about the future of the country within the context of the 2012 Geneva agreement.

The government presented a working paper on Syria's future on Monday, which the opposition rejected.

 

Egypt court delays Morsi trial over jailbreak to Feb. 22

One of the trials of ousted¹⁴ Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has been delayed to Februrary 22nd.

The defense¹⁵ has asked for the postponement¹⁶ to study the case documents. 

The case against Morsi is rooted in the 2011 escape of more than 20-thousand inmates¹⁷ from Egyptian prisons during the unrest which eventually led to the ouster of former President Hosni Mubarak.

Meanwhile, an al-Qaeda-linked group is claiming responsiblity for the assassination¹⁸ of an Egyptian defense official, just hours after Morsi appeared in court.

The Egyptian military is pinning the blame on that killing¹⁹, and the killing of a police officer outside a Coptic Church on Tuesday, on Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood²⁰.

 

EU detains Serb politician suspected of war crimes

A man now-considered a moderate politician in Kosovo has been arrested and detained for alleged²¹ War Crimes and Aggravated²² Murder.

Local Serb leader Oliver Ivanovic is accused of organizing the forced deportation²³ hundreds of Kosovar-Albanians in 1999 and early 2000 in the ethnically-divided city of Mitrovicia.

Ivanovic, who is now being held in detention²⁴ for 30-days, has faced numerous charges in the past, but has never been convicted.

Following the easing of the tensions in Mitrovicia, he later became a member of the Kosovo Assembly, and ran unsuccessfully for the mayor of northern Mitrovicia.

His lawyer says the new charges are politically-motivated.

 

Fidel Castro meets Brazilian, Jamaican leaders during regional summit

Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has made another rare public appearance.

The 87-year old has met with the leaders of Brazil and Jamaica on the sidelines of the Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States currently taking place in Havana.

Cuban state newspaper Granma has published a photo of Fidel Castro meeting with Brazilian President Dilma Rouseff and Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller.

The elder Castro has maintained a relatively²⁵ low profile since handing over power to his brother Raul in 2008 after struggling through intestinal²⁶ problems for years.

 

China reports 8 new human H7N9 cases

The number of human cases of the H7N9 bird flu so far this year in China has surpassed 100.

8 new cases have been reported on Tuesday.

They include 3 new cases in Shenzhen in Guangdong, one in Jiangsu and 4 more in the worst-hit province of Zhejiang.

In total, 104 people have contracted bird flu on the mainland so far this year.

19 have died.

 

Cold front to hit China during Spring Festival/xinhua

A cold front is expected to hit China during the lunar new year holiday.

The National Observatory²⁷ says the first two days of the week-long annual festival will see nice weather, but then cold air will hit most of the country.

The first two days of the festival will also see fog forming along the southern reaches of northern China, as well as down the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

Fog is also forecast for southwestern Sichuan province early in the festival.

Temperatures are expected to drop by six to eight degrees celcius in central and eastern China, and 10 to 14 degrees celcius in north and northeastern China.

The last four days of the holiday will see snow and light rain in the southern part of northwestern China, and areas along the Yellow and Huaihe Rivers.

1 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

2 emphasise   

vt.加强...的语气，强调，着重

参考例句：

• What special feature do you think I should emphasise? 你认为我该强调什么呢？
• The exercises heavily emphasise the required readings.练习非常强调必须的阅读。

3 provocations   

n.挑衅( provocation的名词复数 )；激怒；刺激；愤怒的原因

参考例句：

• We cannot ignore such provocations. 对于这种挑衅，我们不能置之不理。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• They must immediately cease all their provocations. 他们必须停止一切挑衅。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

5 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

6 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

7 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

8 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。

9 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。

10 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

11 besieged   

包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Paris was besieged for four months and forced to surrender. 巴黎被围困了四个月后被迫投降。
• The community besieged the newspaper with letters about its recent editorial. 公众纷纷来信对报社新近发表的社论提出诘问，弄得报社应接不暇。

12 mediator   

n.调解人，中介人

参考例句：

• He always takes the role of a mediator in any dispute.他总是在争论中充当调停人的角色。
• He will appear in the role of mediator.他将出演调停者。

13 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

14 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

15 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。

16 postponement   

n.推迟

参考例句：

• He compounded with his creditors for a postponement of payment. 他与债权人达成协议延期付款。
• Rain caused the postponement of several race-meetings. 几次赛马大会因雨延期。

17 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

19 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。

20 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

21 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

22 aggravated   

使恶化( aggravate的过去式和过去分词 )； 使更严重； 激怒； 使恼火

参考例句：

• If he aggravated me any more I shall hit him. 假如他再激怒我，我就要揍他。
• Far from relieving my cough, the medicine aggravated it. 这药非但不镇咳，反而使我咳嗽得更厉害。

23 deportation   

n.驱逐，放逐

参考例句：

• The government issued a deportation order against the four men.政府发出了对那4名男子的驱逐令。
• Years ago convicted criminals in England could face deportation to Australia.很多年以前，英国已定罪的犯人可能被驱逐到澳大利亚。

24 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

25 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

26 intestinal   

adj.肠的；肠壁；肠道细菌

参考例句：

• A few other conditions are in high intestinal obstruction. 其它少数情况是高位肠梗阻。 来自辞典例句
• This complication has occasionally occurred following the use of intestinal antiseptics. 这种并发症偶而发生在使用肠道抗菌剂上。 来自辞典例句

27 observatory   

n.天文台，气象台，瞭望台，观测台

参考例句：

• Guy's house was close to the observatory.盖伊的房子离天文台很近。
• Officials from Greenwich Observatory have the clock checked twice a day.格林威治天文台的职员们每天对大钟检查两次。