英国新闻听力 俄罗斯人权活动家在车臣被杀害

A prominent Russian human rights campaigner who documented abuses in Chechnya has been murdered. The body of the activist¹ Natalya Estemirova was found in the neighboring region of Ingushetia with gunshot wounds to her head and chest. Witnesses said she’d been kidnapped outside her home in the Chechen capital Grozny on Wednesday morning. The Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said he was outraged² at the murder. From Moscow, Rupert Wingfield-Hayes.

The body of Natalya Estemirova was found dumped in the forest near the border between the Russian republics of Chechnya and Ingushetia. In recent months, she’d been gathering³ evidence of a campaign of house burnings by government-backed militias⁴. Natalya Estemirova was a close friend of the murdered Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya. Together they had investigated kidnappings, torture and extra-judicial killings⁵ by Russian forces fighting the Islamic insurgency⁶ in Chechnya.

The American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said America’s offer to engage with Iran is not open-ended. In a major foreign policy speech in Washington, Mrs. Clinton warned that Iran could face greater isolation⁷ over its nuclear program.

"Iran can become a constructive⁸ actor in the region if it stops threatening its neighbors and supporting terrorism. It can assume a responsible position in the international community if it fulfills⁹ its obligations on human rights. The choice is clear. We remain ready to engage with Iran, but the time for action is now. The opportunity will not remain open indefinitely."

Mrs. Clinton also said the US has admired the energy of Iran’s recent presidential election, but was appalled¹⁰ by the way the Iranian government had quelled¹¹ protests over the disputed ballots¹².

Almost 170 people have died in a plane crash in Iran. The Russian-made jet operated by Caspian Airlines crashed shortly after taking off on a flight to Armenia. Jon Leyne reports.

The plane was a Tupolev aircraft on its way from the capital Tehran to Yerevan in Armenia. Sixteen minutes into the flight, it disappeared from the radar¹³. One witness described how it plummeted¹⁴ from the sky, possibly after engine problems or a fire on board. State TV has been showing pictures of a huge crater¹⁵ gouged¹⁶ in the earth, the scattered¹⁷ ruins still smoldering¹⁸. It’s clear no one could have survived. Iran has a notoriously bad air-safety record. Because of sanctions imposed by the United States, Iran relies on an increasingly aging fleet of airliners¹⁹ and has trouble buying spare parts.

The government of Nigeria has welcomed a 60-day ceasefire, declared by the main militant²⁰ group in the country’s oil-rich Niger Delta²¹ region. But the Minister of Defense²² General Godwin Abbe said that the group, the Movement for the Emancipation²³ of the Niger Delta or MEND, have no right to demand that the military withdraw from parts of the region. MEND, which is fighting for oil revenues to be distributed more widely, said it hoped the ceasefire would lead to talks with the government.

Reports are coming in from the United States of a shooting incident in Washington. Police are said to have shot a suspect to try to flee after his car had been pulled over a few blocks from the Capitol building which houses the US Congress. The suspect was taken to hospital, but there’s no word on the person’s condition. Some of the entrances to the Capitol building were sealed off. Details are still coming in.

General Motors’ offshoot in Brazil is to spend more than a billion dollars to develop two new models for the Brazilian market. GM in Brazil says it’s funding half the development costs from its own resources and half will be lent by state banks. From Sao Paulo, Gary Duffy reports.

GM in Brazil is financially independent of the company in the United States, and at the moment, its fortunes seem to be in a much healthier state as well. Last year the company sold a record number of cars in South America’s largest country, and executives say they hope to exceed that target in 2009. Now in a further sign of confidence in future sales, the company is to spend around one billion dollars, developing two new models which it says will be based on Brazilian engineering and design. GM in Brazil has also been keen to stress that there will be no dependence²⁴ on products from the United States.

A smoker²⁵ in the United States has accidentally bought the world’s most expensive packet of cigarettes at a cost of 23 quadrillion dollars. The man, Josh Muszynski told the BBC he was alarmed to discover his debit²⁶ card bill for the cigarettes bought at a petrol station in New Hampshire was more than the US national debt. His bank eventually accepted that the 17-digit purchase had been a mistake and refunded²⁷ his money the next day.

The US Defense Department says it won’t ban troops from smoking in war zones despite of a report recommending a tobacco-free military. A Pentagon spokesman said the troops were already under enough stress fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the department didn’t want to take away one of the few outlets²⁸ they had to relieve it.

记录车臣恶行的俄罗斯著名人权活动家被谋杀。人权积极分子纳塔利娅·埃斯蒂米洛娃的尸体在临近的印古什被发现，头部和胸部中枪。目击者称周三早上她在车臣首都格罗兹尼的家外被绑架。俄罗斯总统梅德韦杰夫称对谋杀事件非常愤怒。莫斯科，Rupert Wingfield-Hayes报道。

纳塔利娅·埃斯蒂米洛娃的尸体被丢弃在俄罗斯车臣共和国和印古什共和国边境附近的森林里。最近几个月，她一直在搜集政府支持的好战分子纵火案的证据。纳塔利娅·埃斯蒂米洛娃是被谋杀的俄罗斯记者安娜?波里科夫斯卡娅的好友。他们曾一起调查过俄罗斯军队在车臣境内抗击伊斯兰叛乱分子时代绑架，虐待和残杀事件。

美国国务卿希拉里称，美国邀请伊朗进行对话的举动并不是不可动摇的。在华盛顿发表外交政策讲话时，希拉里警告说，由于核计划，伊朗会面临更严重的孤立。

“如果伊朗停止其对邻国的威胁，停止对恐怖主义的支持，它可以在该地区发挥建设性的作用。如果它能够完成人权方面的任务，它就可以恢复在国际社会的位置。我们随时准备与伊朗进行接洽，但是行动的时间就是现在。机会不是无限期存在的。”

克林顿说，美国钦佩伊朗最近总统选举的表现，但是为伊朗政府镇压对选票持有异议的抗议者感到非常惊骇。

伊朗一架飞机坠毁，大约170人死亡。这家俄罗斯制造的客机由伊朗里海航空公司运营，在飞往亚美尼亚的途中起飞后不久即坠毁。Jon Leyne报道。

这架飞机是图波列夫式飞机，由首都德黑兰飞往亚美尼亚首都埃里温。起飞16分钟后飞机在雷达系统中消失。一位目击者描述，飞机从空中垂直落下，可能是由于引擎问题或飞机上起火。国家电视台播放了地面上撞击产生的大坑，分散的碎片仍然在冒烟。非常明显，不可能有人生还。伊朗的空中安全记录臭名昭著。由于美国对其进行制裁，伊朗依赖越来越老化的飞机，没有能力购买零部件。

尼日利亚尼日尔三角洲地区主要的好战组织宣布停战60天，尼日利亚政府对此表示欢迎。但是尼日利亚国防部长戈德温·阿贝表示，尼日尔三角洲解放运动组织（MEND）无权要求政府军队从部分地区撤退。MEND一直要求获得更多石油收益份额，他们说，希望停火能够换来和政府的谈判。

来自美国的报道称华盛顿发生枪击事件。据称，警察在国会山附近做例行交通检查时截停一名35岁男子，但该男子迅速跳入其车内开车逃逸，被警方击中。嫌疑人被送往医院，但是没有透漏任何伤势状况。国会山部分入口被封闭。我们还会继续报道详细信息。

通用汽车巴西分公司将投资10亿多美元为巴西市场开发两个新的车型。通用汽车巴西公司称，开发费用一半来自自有资源，一部分来自国有银行贷款。圣保罗，Gary Duffy报道。

通用汽车巴西公司在财政方面独立于美国公司，目前，其财政状况似乎要更加健康。去年，该公司在南美最大的国家销量创历史记录，管理人员称，他们希望2009年能够超过这一目标。现在，该公司对未来的销量更有信心，决定投资10亿美元左右开发两种新车型，将基于巴西队工程和设计。通用汽车巴西公司还急切强调，他们不会以来来自美国的产品。

美国一位吸烟者意外地以17位数的价格购得世界上最昂贵的一包烟。这位名叫Josh Muszynski的男子告诉BBC，他意外的发现他购买这包香烟的借记卡账单比美国的债务还要高。银行最终接受，这笔高达17位数的交易是一个错误，第二天将资金返还。

美国国防部称，尽管有报告建议建造无烟军队，他们不会禁止军队在战区吸烟。五角大楼一位发言人称，军队在伊拉克和阿富汗进行战争已经承受了很大压力，国防部不会剥夺他们放松的方式。

1 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

2 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

3 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。

4 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

5 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。

6 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

7 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

8 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

9 fulfills   

v.履行（诺言等）( fulfill的第三人称单数 )；执行（命令等）；达到（目的）；使结束

参考例句：

• He always fulfills his promises. 他总是履行自己的诺言。 来自辞典例句
• His own work amply fulfills this robust claim. 他自己的作品在很大程度上实现了这一正确主张。 来自辞典例句

10 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 quelled   

v.（用武力）制止，结束，镇压( quell的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Thanks to Kao Sung-nien's skill, the turmoil had been quelled. 亏高松年有本领，弹压下去。 来自汉英文学 - 围城
• Mr. Atkinson was duly quelled. 阿特金森先生被及时地将了一军。 来自辞典例句

12 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

14 plummeted   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
• A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 crater   

n.火山口，弹坑

参考例句：

• With a telescope you can see the huge crater of Ve-suvius.用望远镜你能看到巨大的维苏威火山口。
• They came to the lip of a dead crater.他们来到了一个死火山口。

16 gouged   

v.凿( gouge的过去式和过去分词 )；乱要价；（在…中）抠出…；挖出…

参考例句：

• The lion's claws had gouged a wound in the horse's side. 狮爪在马身一侧抓了一道深口。
• The lovers gouged out their names on the tree. 情人们把他们的名字刻在树上。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

17 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

18 smoldering   

v.用文火焖烧，熏烧，慢燃( smolder的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The mat was smoldering where the burning log had fallen. 燃烧的木棒落下的地方垫子慢慢燃烧起来。 来自辞典例句
• The wood was smoldering in the fireplace. 木柴在壁炉中闷烧。 来自辞典例句

19 airliners   

n.客机，班机( airliner的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The fog grounded the airliners. 大雾迫使班机停飞。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They placed very stable and accurate atomic clocks on regularly scheduled jet airliners. 他们将非常稳定、准确的原子钟装在定期飞行的喷气式班机上。 来自辞典例句

20 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。

21 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

22 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。

23 emancipation   

n.（从束缚、支配下）解放

参考例句：

• We must arouse them to fight for their own emancipation. 我们必须唤起他们为其自身的解放而斗争。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They rejoiced over their own emancipation. 他们为自己的解放感到欢欣鼓舞。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

25 smoker   

n.吸烟者，吸烟车厢，吸烟室

参考例句：

• His wife dislikes him to be a smoker.他妻子不喜欢他当烟民。
• He is a moderate smoker.他是一个有节制的烟民。

26 debit   

n.借方，借项，记人借方的款项

参考例句：

• To whom shall I debit this sum?此款应记入谁的账户的借方？
• We undercharge Mr.Smith and have to send him a debit note for the extra amount.我们少收了史密斯先生的钱，只得给他寄去一张借条所要欠款。

27 refunded   

v.归还，退还( refund的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Postage costs will be refunded (to you). 邮费将退还（给你）。 来自辞典例句
• Yes, it will be refunded to you at the expiration of the lease. 是的，租约期满时，押金退回。 来自无师自通 校园英语会话

28 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》