英国新闻听力 头号恐怖分子可能已死亡

Indonesian police have surrounded a house in central Java, having exchanged gunfire with the occupants believed to include one of Southeast Asia's most wanted militants² Noordin Top. Police say Mr. Noordin, a Malaysian national and the leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah group is suspected of orchestrating all major attacks in Indonesia in recent years, including last month's bombings of two Jakarta hotels and the Bali bombings in 2002 and 2005. Rebecca Henschke reports from Jakarta.

Heavily armed police have surrounded a house in a rice field in the small town of Temanggung in central Java. Police spokesperson Nanan Soekarna says he believes Noordin Mohammed Top is inside. There has been exchange of fire and authorities have evacuated³ residents in nearby houses. Indonesian police have been searching for the Malaysian-born fugitive⁴ for almost 7 years and have mistakenly claimed they’ve caught him in the past.

President Obama has welcomed the improved jobless figures in the United States as a sign that the worst of the economic crisis may have already passed. He said the figures which for the first time in 16 months showed a slight drop in unemployment could be the light at the end of the tunnel. President Obama said that the fall in unemployment figures could signal a turning point in the country's economic fortunes.

"Though we lost 247,000 jobs in July, that was nearly 200,000 fewer jobs lost than in June. Today we're pointed⁵ in the right direction. We are losing jobs at less than half the rate we were when I took office. We've pulled the financial system back from the brink⁶."

However, President Obama said there was still a great deal to be done to rebuild the economy.

Ceremonies have been held in Georgia to mark the first anniversary of its brief war with Russia. A nationwide minute of silence was observed to remember the hundreds of people who died in the five-day conflict. And candlelight vigils have been held throughout the night. Speaking at a ceremony to mark the anniversary, the Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili accused Russia of having tried to annihilate⁷ Georgia.

"My dear people, our nation was yet again thrust into a battle for its existence, for its survival. On the 7th of August 2008, the Russian plan for destroying Georgia's freedom, democracy and statehood was put into operation in the most ruthless and merciless manner."

The Mexican authorities say 12 people were killed including 3 police officers in clashes in the central state of Hidalgo between police and suspected drugs traffickers. A police spokesman said the nine suspected traffickers had been traveling in a convoy⁸ of three trucks and were heavily armed. Nearly 10,000 people have been killed in the last 18 months in Mexico in drug-related violence.

The Bolivian President Evo Morales has accused his Colombian counterpart Alvaro Uribe of betraying the people of Latin America with his plans to allow American troops to use Colombian military bases. Mr. Morales said that Colombia's plan of greater military cooperation with the US was aimed at countering the efforts of left-wing governments like his that were fighting for greater social justice and equality.

There were strong indications that one of Pakistan's most wanted men, the Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud has been killed. He's thought to have died in a US drone attack on Wednesday. A senior US official has told the BBC that Baitullah Mehsud had a close relationship with Al-Qaeda and was considered to be in charge of their terror campaign to render Pakistan ungovernable. From Washington, John Donaldson reports.

Baitullah Mehsud is or it would seem was the most wanted man in Pakistan. The American government had a five-million-dollar prize on his head. Now it seems they have got their man. Mehsud is believed to have played a key role in a string of attacks including the assassination⁹ of the two-time Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. The US officials said if confirmed, his death would be a real setback¹⁰ for the Pakistani Taliban.

The President of Nigeria Umaru Yar'Adua has received a group of 32 militant¹ leaders who surrendered their arms as part of a weapons amnesty in the oil-rich Niger Delta¹¹. At a ceremony in Abuja, the president thanked the militants for laying down their weapons. A spokesman for the group said they wanted to see change in the Delta region.

Archaeologists in Italy said they have discovered the remains¹² of a sumptuous¹³ Roman villa¹⁴ believed to be the birthplace of the Emperor Vespasian. The villa dating back some 2,000 years has luxurious¹⁵ features like colonnades¹⁶, bathhouses and colorful mosaic¹⁷ floors. Vespasian, who became emperor in 69 AD, is credited with rescuing the Roman Empire from the chaos¹⁸ that followed the reign¹⁹ of Emperor Nero.

印尼警方包围了爪哇岛中部一所房屋，并与居住者交火。据称，居住者中包括东南亚头号恐怖主义嫌疑犯诺丁·托普（Noordin Top）。警方称，诺丁是马来西亚国籍，伊斯兰祈祷团领袖，涉嫌与近年来印尼国土上发生的所有重大恐怖袭击有关，包括2002年和2005年巴厘岛爆炸事件和上月发生的两起雅加达酒店爆炸事件。Rebecca Henschke 从雅加达发回报道。

装备精良的印尼警方在爪哇岛中部小镇Temanggung包围了稻田中的一所房屋。警方发言人Nanan Soekarna说他相信诺丁·托普就在其中。双方之间发生交火，官方紧急疏散了附近房屋中的居民。印尼警方七年来一直搜索这名马来西亚逃犯，以前曾经错误的宣布他的死讯。

美国总统奥巴马对美国失业率的好转表示欢迎，说这是经济危机最困难的时期已经过去的标志。他说，美国失业率16个月来首次出现轻微下降，可以被看成黑暗中的曙光。奥巴马总统说，失业率的下降可以被看成全国经济状况的转折点。

“尽管7月份新增失业人数247,000，然而，总数比6月份减少了20,000。今天，我们正朝向正确的方向前进。我们的失业率还不到我刚刚执政时的一半。我们已经将金融体系从危机边缘拉了回来。”

然而，奥巴马总统指出，要重塑美国经济还有许多工作要做。

格鲁吉亚举行各种庆典活动来纪念与俄罗斯战争一周年。全国进行一分钟默哀，以纪念那些在为期5天的战争中牺牲的人们，整晚都烛光闪烁。在一周年纪念日的仪式上，格鲁吉亚总统萨卡什维利发表讲话，他指控俄罗斯企图废止格鲁吉亚。

“亲爱的人民，我们的国家又因为它的存在，它的存货而被卷入战争。2008年8月7日，俄罗斯企图摧毁格鲁吉亚的自由，民主，我们的国家以最残忍的方式被卷入军事行动。”

墨西哥当局称，在墨西哥中部的Hidalgo，警方与毒品走私嫌疑犯之间发生冲突，12人被杀，包括3名警官。一名警方发言人称，9名毒品走私嫌疑人装备精良，正在护送三辆卡车。在过去18个月，墨西哥与毒品相关的暴力事件已造成接近10,000人死亡。

玻利维亚总统埃沃·莫拉莱斯称，哥伦比亚总统乌里韦允许美国军队使用格伦比亚基地的行为背叛了拉美人民。莫拉莱斯说，哥伦比亚与美国进行更大范围的军事合作的计划目的是反抗左翼政府争取更大的社会正义和公平的努力。

有强力证据显示，巴基斯坦头号通缉犯，塔利班头目马哈苏德(Baitullah Mehsud)已被击毙。据称，马哈苏德在周三美军的炸弹袭击中死亡。

一名美国高级官员告诉BBC，马哈苏德与基地组织关系密切，他负责了巴基斯坦一些列恐怖活动，导致巴基斯坦情况混乱。华盛顿，Donaldson报道。

马哈苏德是或者看上去是巴基斯坦头号恐怖主义头目。美国政府悬赏500万美元对其进行住那。现在，似乎他们已经抓到这个人。据称，马哈苏德在一系列恐怖行动中发挥了关键作用，其中包括巴基斯坦总理贝·布托被暗杀事件。美国官员称，如果消息得到确认，他的死讯是巴基斯坦塔利班分子的重大挫败。

尼日利亚总统奥马鲁·亚拉杜瓦在石油资源丰富的尼日尔三角洲地区接受了32名好战分子的缴械。在阿布贾举行的仪式上，总统感谢好战分子放下武器。该组织发言人称，他们希望看到尼日尔地区形势的改变。

意大利考古学家称他们发现了豪华的罗马别墅的遗址，这应该是国王维斯佩西安的出生地。这栋别墅可以追溯到2,000年前，柱廊，浴室，五颜六色的马赛克地板无不展示着它的豪华。维斯佩西安于公元69年成为国王，他从尼罗国王手中接管罗马之后，将罗马帝国从混乱中拯救出来。

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 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。

3 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

4 fugitive   

adj.逃亡的，易逝的；n.逃犯，逃亡者

参考例句：

• The police were able to deduce where the fugitive was hiding.警方成功地推断出那逃亡者躲藏的地方。
• The fugitive is believed to be headed for the border.逃犯被认为在向国境线逃窜。

5 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

6 brink   

n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿

参考例句：

• The tree grew on the brink of the cliff.那棵树生长在峭壁的边缘。
• The two countries were poised on the brink of war.这两个国家处于交战的边缘。

7 annihilate   

v.使无效；毁灭；取消

参考例句：

• Archer crumpled up the yellow sheet as if the gesture could annihilate the news it contained.阿切尔把这张黄纸揉皱，好象用这个动作就会抹掉里面的消息似的。
• We should bear in mind that we have to annihilate the enemy.我们要把歼敌的重任时刻记在心上。

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 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。

10 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

11 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。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

13 sumptuous   

adj.豪华的，奢侈的，华丽的

参考例句：

• The guests turned up dressed in sumptuous evening gowns.客人们身着华丽的夜礼服出现了。
• We were ushered into a sumptuous dining hall.我们被领进一个豪华的餐厅。

14 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。

15 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

16 colonnades   

n.石柱廊( colonnade的名词复数 )

参考例句：

17 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

18 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

19 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。