英国新闻听力 埃及两辆客运火车相撞

President Obama has declared the current outbreak of swine flu in the United States a national emergency. The move comes amid rising concern about the spread of the H1N1 virus. Medical officials warned earlier this month of a possible shortage of the swine flu vaccine¹. James Hodges has compiled this report.

The White House says President Obama’s proclamation of a national emergency will give medical officials more freedom to tackle the virus, allowing them to bypass certain federal requirements when deciding what action to take. Swine flu is now widespread in almost all of the American states, and it's passed epidemic² levels in most of them. Health officials say children are being hit hard by the disease. They account for almost 100 of 1,000 people killed in America so far.

Two passenger trains have collided in Egypt. Witnesses say at least 15 people have been killed and more than 20 others have been injured. From Cairo, Yolande Knell³ sent this report.

It’s understood that one train crashed into another which was stationary⁴ on the tracks, close to Al-Ayyat in Giza Governorate to the south of Cairo. Several carriages were badly damaged. Rescue workers are now at the scene trying to remove bodies and the injured from the wreckage⁵. There have been several serious crashes on Egyptian railway lines in recent years. Last year, 44 people were killed in northern Egypt, and back in 2002, at least 360 people were killed in a fire on a crowded passenger train close to the location of the latest crash.

A Saudi Arabian court has sentenced a female journalist to 60 lashes⁶ for her part in producing a television program, in which a Saudi man broke a major taboo⁷ in the deeply conservative country by describing his extra-marital sex life. The program caused a huge scandal when it was shown several months ago on LBC, a Lebanese satellite channel. Serbastin Usher⁸ reports.

The original program was part of a series called Red Lines. It examined taboos⁹ in the Arab world. Unmarried sex in Saudi Arabia amongst Saudis is one of the biggest. The Saudi man in the show Mazen Abdul Jawad provoked outrage¹⁰ by describing his techniques for meeting and having sex with Saudi women. He later tearfully apologized but was jailed for five years and sentenced to 1,000 lashes. Mr. Abdul Jawad blamed LBC producers for tricking him. The station's offices in Saudi Arabia were closed down and two of its producers - both female - put on trial.

Officials in Washington say a North Korean diplomat¹¹ has made a rare visit to the US and has had talks with an American negotiator. A spokesman for the State Department said the diplomat Ri Gun met the American special envoy¹² for North Korean nuclear disarmament, Sung Kim, in New York. Pyongyang walked out of multiple-lateral talks about its nuclear program six months ago after sanctions were imposed on it for testing nuclear weapons. It said it would only return to negotiations¹³ after direct talks with the US.

An American spokesman says President Obama has secured the full support of his French and Russian counterparts over policy towards Iran’s nuclear program. The spokesman says the president phoned both Nicolas Sarkozy and Dmitry Medvedev today, and both leaders backed a proposal deal on Iran endorsed¹⁴ by the UN’s nuclear agency, the IAEA. Tehran says it will respond to the plan this week.

The Pakistani army said that it has captured Kotkai, the hometown of the Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud a week after launching a large scale offensive against the militants¹⁵’ strongholds in the South Waziristan tribal¹⁶ region. Local officials said three soldiers and four militants were killed in the operation to capture the town. Pakistan’s military spokesman General Athar Abbas said Kotkai had been an important base for militants.

"The place was a stronghold of terrorists with a majority of houses converted into strong bunkers. The town also has a training camp of Qari Hussein who is known as the mentor¹⁷ of suicide bombers¹⁸. Security forces are in the process of clearing the built-up areas from IEDs, mines and booby traps."

A meeting of about 600 Church of England priests in London has ended with several signalling that they are ready to accept an offer from the Pope to join the Roman Catholic Church. The priests are members of the Forward in Faith group which is unhappy with the Church of England's position on issues such as women bishops¹⁹ and homosexual clergy²⁰. However, a BBC correspondent says other Anglicans are desperate to preserve the Church of England's historical role in uniting even Jellico protestants with those more sympathetic to Catholicism.

Pope Benedict has appointed a Ghanaian Cardinal²¹ Peter Turkson to one of the most influential²² posts in the Vatican. Analysts²³ say the appointment to the justice and peace office strengthens Cardinal Turkson’s position as a future papal candidate.

奥巴马总统宣布目前美国的猪流感爆发进入全国紧急状态，人们对H1N1病毒传播的担忧逐渐增加。本月初，医疗官员曾警告称可能会出现疫苗短缺。James Hodges编译报道。

白宫表示，奥巴马总统对全国紧急状态命令的宣布将给予医疗工作者在应对H1N1病毒方面更大的自由空间，允许他们在决定采取什么措施时忽视某些联邦要求。猪流感现在几乎已经在美国所有州蔓延，而且在大多数州已经超过大规模流行水平。卫生官员称，儿童受这种疾病影响最为严重。目前为止，美国因甲型H1N1流感病毒死亡的1000人中有100名是儿童。

在埃及，两辆客运火车相撞。目击者称，至少15人死亡，20多人受伤。开罗，Yolande Knell发回报道。

据了解，在开罗南部的吉萨地区Al-Ayyat附近，一辆火车撞上另外一辆在轨道上停止的客车。几节车厢遭到严重损坏。目前，搜救人员正在事故现场，试图将死伤者从废墟中拯救出来。近几年，埃及铁路发生了几起严重的撞击事件。去年，埃及北部有44人遇难，2002年，在这次事故现场附近地点，一辆拥挤的客车上发生大火，造成至少360人死亡。

一名沙特阿拉伯女记者因其制作的电视节目被法庭判处鞭笞60下。在该节目中，一名沙特男子描述了他的婚外性经验，严重触犯了这个极度保守的国家的禁忌。几个月前，该节目在黎巴嫩卫星频道LBC播出时造成了巨大的丑闻。

该原创性节目是《挑战底线》系列节目的一部分，审查阿拉伯世界的禁忌，其中婚外性关系是最为严重的。男子Mazen Abdul Jawad在节目中大谈与沙特女性约会和发生关系的技巧，引起人们的极度愤怒。随后，他泪流满面地道歉，但是还是被判处5年的监禁和鞭笞1,000下。Mazen Abdul Jawad指责LBC制片人欺骗他。LBC驻沙特阿拉伯办事处已经关闭，两名女制片人均被审判。

华盛顿官员称，朝鲜外交官对美国进行了稀有访问，并与美国协调员进行了会谈。美国国务院一名发言人表示，外交官李根在纽约会见了美国驻朝鲜核裁军特使Sung Kim。六个月前，国际社会因朝鲜测试核武器而对其进行制裁，后来平壤退出多边会谈。平壤方面表示，只有在与美国进行直接对话之后才会重返谈判。

一名美国发言人称，奥巴马总统在对伊朗核项目政策方面获得了法国和俄罗斯总统的全面支持。这名发言人表示，奥巴马总统致电萨科齐和梅德韦杰夫总统，两位领导人均对国际原子能机构签署的针对伊朗的协议表示支持。德黑兰方面表示，他们本周会对该计划做出回应。

巴基斯坦军方表示，在对南瓦齐里斯坦部落地区好战分子要塞发起大规模进攻一周之后，已经占领了塔利班头目哈基穆拉·马哈苏德(Hakimullah Mehsud)的家乡Kotkai。当地官员称，在占领该镇的过程中，3名士兵和4名好战分子死亡。巴基斯坦军方发言人少将阿瑟·阿巴斯表示，Kotkai曾经是好战分子的重要基地。

“这里是恐怖分子的要塞，大部分房屋都被改造为坚固的堡垒。该镇还有Qari Hussein的一个训练营，他是自杀式爆炸者的总指挥。现在，安全力量正在镇内进行搜索。”

来自英国600多个教堂的牧师在伦敦举行的会议宣告结束，几名牧师表示，他们准备接受教皇的邀请，加入罗马天主教堂。这些牧师是Forward in Faith组织的成员，他们对英国教堂在女性主教和同性恋牧师等问题的立场表示不满。然而，BBC记者表示，其他教徒均极力捍卫英国教堂在团结新教徒和天主教捍卫者方面的历史性作用。

本笃教皇任命加纳红衣主教Peter Turkson在梵蒂冈担任最有影响力的职位。分析家称，此次被委任负责争议与和平办公室增强了红衣主教Peter Turkson成为未来教宗候选人的地位。

1 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。

2 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

3 knell   

n.丧钟声；v.敲丧钟

参考例句：

• That is the death knell of the British Empire.这是不列颠帝国的丧钟。
• At first he thought it was a death knell.起初，他以为是死亡的丧钟敲响了。

4 stationary   

adj.固定的，静止不动的

参考例句：

• A stationary object is easy to be aimed at.一个静止不动的物体是容易瞄准的。
• Wait until the bus is stationary before you get off.你要等公共汽车停稳了再下车。

5 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

6 lashes   

n.鞭挞( lash的名词复数 )；鞭子；突然猛烈的一击；急速挥动v.鞭打( lash的第三人称单数 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• Mother always lashes out food for the children's party. 孩子们聚会时，母亲总是给他们许多吃的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Never walk behind a horse in case it lashes out. 绝对不要跟在马后面，以防它突然猛踢。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 taboo   

n.禁忌，禁止接近，禁止使用；adj.禁忌的；v.禁忌，禁制，禁止

参考例句：

• The rude words are taboo in ordinary conversation.这些粗野的字眼在日常谈话中是禁忌的。
• Is there a taboo against sex before marriage in your society?在你们的社会里，婚前的性行为犯禁吗？

8 usher   

n.带位员，招待员；vt.引导，护送；vi.做招待，担任引座员

参考例句：

• The usher seated us in the front row.引座员让我们在前排就座。
• They were quickly ushered away.他们被迅速领开。

9 taboos   

禁忌( taboo的名词复数 )； 忌讳； 戒律； 禁忌的事物（或行为）

参考例句：

• She was unhorsed by fences, laws and alien taboos. 她被藩蓠、法律及外来的戒律赶下了马。
• His mind was charged with taboos. 他头脑里忌讳很多。

10 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

11 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

12 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。

13 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。

14 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 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。

16 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

17 mentor   

n.指导者，良师益友；v.指导

参考例句：

• He fed on the great ideas of his mentor.他以他导师的伟大思想为支撑。
• He had mentored scores of younger doctors.他指导过许多更年轻的医生。

18 bombers   

n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 )；投弹手；安非他明胶囊；大麻叶香烟

参考例句：

• Enemy bombers carried out a blitz on the city. 敌军轰炸机对这座城市进行了突袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Royal Airforce sill remained dangerously short of bombers. 英国皇家空军仍未脱离极为缺乏轰炸机的危境。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 bishops   

（基督教某些教派管辖大教区的）主教( bishop的名词复数 )； （国际象棋的）象

参考例句：

• Each player has two bishops at the start of the game. 棋赛开始时，每名棋手有两只象。
• "Only sheriffs and bishops and rich people and kings, and such like. “他劫富济贫，抢的都是郡长、主教、国王之类的富人。

20 clergy   

n.[总称]牧师，神职人员

参考例句：

• I could heartily wish that more of our country clergy would follow this example.我衷心希望，我国有更多的牧师效法这个榜样。
• All the local clergy attended the ceremony.当地所有的牧师出席了仪式。

21 cardinal   

n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的

参考例句：

• This is a matter of cardinal significance.这是非常重要的事。
• The Cardinal coloured with vexation. 红衣主教感到恼火，脸涨得通红。

22 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

23 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。