英国新闻听力 美联储可能提前加息

Twenty tourists were among the victims of an attack by gunman on one of Tunisia’s most prestigious¹ museums. The assailant shot dead visitors from South Africa, Poland, Italy and Spain as they were getting off a bus outside the Bardo Museum in the capital Tunis which stands next to the country’s parliament. At least 22 people died in the attack and more than 40 others were wounded. Two hours later Tunisian security forces shot the gunman dead. Adnan Cotour reports from Tunis.

“The last group of tourists were taken away on a bus a while ago, wailing² at bystanders and security forces and many Tunisians here are reluctant to leave. “I’m sad and shocked”, one of them told me. The attacker has managed to strike both at political as well at the economic heart of the country. The site of the attack the Bardo museum is a Tunis Watte Louvre as to Paris. It’s in walking distance to parliament where terrified politicians were locked down when the attack began. This is the first attack on civilians³ in more than decades. And as an act of defiant⁴ and solidarity⁵ with victims, politicians have been gathering⁶ here this evening.”

As the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares to build a new governing coalition⁷, the US has criticized the tactics that won him the election. Kim Ghattes reports from Washington.

“The White House made very clear it was deeply concerned about the “divisive rhetoric” used in the campaign directed at Israeli Arabs. The administration also said it would reevaluate its position on the best way to achieve a two states solution. The Israeli leader has said there would be no Palestinian state if he were reelected. And in a scathing⁸ editorial the New York Times said Mr. Netanyahu had laid bare his duplicity and confirmed suspicions he never had any intention to negotiate a peace deal.”

The US Federal Reserve has signaled it’s now prepared to raise interest rates. Following a two-day meeting the central bank’s policy setting committee ended its pledge to be patient before reversing the monetary⁹ policy it's pursued since financial crisis of 2008, but the Chairperson of Federal reserve Janet Yellen said the rise may not be immediate¹⁰.

“Today’s modification¹¹ of our guidance should not be interpreted to mean that we’ve decided¹² on the timing¹³ of their increase. In other words, just because we removed the word patient from the statement doesn’t mean we’re going to be impatient. Our policy is likely to remain highly accommodative to support continued progress toward our objectives of maximum employment and 2% inflation.”

The Pentagon says it’s killed a leader of the Somali militant¹⁴ group Al-shabab in a drone strike. US defense¹⁵ official said Adan Garar, the man accused of the planning of the attack on a shopping mall in Kenya two years ago was hit by a drone equipped with hellfire missile in southern Somalia last Friday. The US has been assessing the operation before confirming that Gara was the target.

World news from the BBC

A Pakistani government minister has announced the last minute stay of execution in the case of a man who, rights groups say, was a child when he was convicted with involuntary manslaughter. Shaphcat Husin was due to be executed on Thursday. A British based children’s charity Child Rights International Network says he was 14 years old at the time of the crime and insists he was tortured into confessing.

The leaders of the United States in Germany have said they’ll maintain sanctions imposed on Russia for its support of separatists in Ukraine. President Obama and Chancellor¹⁶ Angela Merkel said the sanctions were necessary to bring a lasting¹⁷ resolution to the crisis. The commitment comes as president Putin acknowledged the damage caused by the sanctions.

The Brazilian government has announced a raft of anti-corruption¹⁸ measures following Sunday’s mass protest across the country demanding the impeachment¹⁹ of president Dilma Rousseff. Speaking in Brasilia, Ms. Rousseff called for a national pact²⁰ against corruption. Wyre Davies reports from Rio.

“Earlier this week, the president described corruption as nothing new in Brazil, but promised to do something about it. Today we heard some of the detail, declaring that she’d always fought against corruption, she called for a national pact to tackle it and promised laws to criminalize and regulate the funding at political campaigns and money laundering²¹ in elections. But to several senior politicians and industrial executives implicated²² in the Petrobras inquiry²³, it is questionable²⁴ if the proposals go far enough.”

The world’s highest-paid model Gisele Bundchen has announced she is to retire from the catwalk. The Brazilian supermodel's spokeswoman and sister Patricia said Gisele wants to focus on her family and special projects. The 34-year old model has been a face of French fashion house Chanel, and has worked with designer of Valentino, Versace and Louis Vuitton. Reports say she earned estimated 47million dollars last year. She will make a final catwalk-well at Sao Paulo’s fashion week in April.

武装分子在突尼斯最著名博物馆实施袭击案，遇难者中有20名游客。袭击者开枪打死来自南非、波兰、意大利和西班牙的游客，案发时游客们正准备从首都突尼斯巴杜博物馆外的大巴上下来，附近就是突尼斯国会。至少22人在袭击中遇难，另外40多人受伤。两小时后突尼斯安全部队将武装分子击毙。阿德南在突尼斯报道。

“刚才最后一批游客乘坐大巴车离开，他们对着旁观者和安全部队哭泣，这里很多突尼斯人都不愿离开。其中一个告诉我，‘我很伤心，也很震惊。’这些袭击者设法对这个该国的政治和经济中心进行了打击，袭击发生地巴杜博物馆对突尼斯来说，就相当于巴黎的卢浮宫。这里距离国会只有几步之遥，当袭击发生时，惊恐万状的政客们被锁了起来。这是几十年来平民遭遇的第一次袭击，为了表现无畏的精神和与受害者的团结，政客们今晚一直聚集在这里。”

以色列总理本杰明·内塔尼亚胡准备组建新的执政联盟，美国批评了这个帮他赢得选举的策略。金·盖特斯在华盛顿报道。

“白宫明确表示对竞选中对以色列阿拉伯人使用的‘矛盾的花言巧语’深感忧虑，美国政府还表示将重新评估其立场，来最好地实现两国方案。这位以色列领导人一直表示一旦自己再度当选，就不可能存在巴勒斯坦国。纽约时报在一篇严厉的社论中说，内塔尼亚胡暴露了自己的口是心非，并证实了之前对他的怀疑，即他从未想过要协商和平协议。”

美联储表示现在准备提高利率，在两天的会议之后，央行政策制定委员会放弃了之前的承诺，也就是在扭转2008年金融危机以来实施的货币政策之前会保持耐心，但美联储主席珍妮特·耶伦称升息不会立即进行。

“不能将今天对指导方针的修改理解为我们已经决定了升息的时间，也就是说，只是因为我们将耐心一词从声明中去除掉，并不意味着我们准备失去耐心。我们的政策可能还要保持适应性，来支持继续的发展，从而实现我们最大就业和2%通胀的目标。”

五角大楼称在一次无人机袭击中击毙索马里武装组织阿尔沙巴布的一名头目，美国国防部官员称阿丹，也就是被控两年前策划袭击肯尼亚购物中心的男子上周五在索马里南部被一架配备地狱火导弹的无人机击毙。在确认阿丹是袭击目标之前，美国一直在评估这次行动。

BBC世界新闻。

巴基斯坦政府部长宣布在处决最后时刻被准予死缓的男子，正如权利组织所说的，在被定为过失杀人罪时还是个孩子。Shaphcat Husin原本是周四处决，但总部在英国的儿童慈善机构儿童权利国际网络称他在犯罪时只有14岁，并坚称他是屈打成招的。

在德国的美国领导人称将继续保持对俄罗斯的制裁，作为为其支持乌克兰分裂分子的惩罚。奥巴马总统和总理安吉拉·默克尔称制裁对于用长久途径解决危机来说是必要的，他们做出这一承诺时，普京总统已经承认制裁造成了破坏。

在周日巴西各地举行大规模抗议要求弹劾总统迪尔玛·罗塞夫后，巴西政府宣布采取系列反腐措施。罗塞夫在巴西利亚发表讲话，呼吁实施国民公约来对付腐败。怀尔·戴维斯在里约报道。

“本周早些时候，总统称在巴西腐败不是件新鲜事，但承诺要对此作出行动。今天我们听到一些细节，总统表示自己一直在与腐败作斗争，她呼吁采取国民公约来解决这个问题，并承诺规范政治选举中的资金，并将选举中的洗钱活动定为刑事罪。但对几位涉入巴西石油公司调查的高级政客和行业高管来说，人们质疑这个提议是否会走得足够远。”

全世界薪酬最高的模特吉赛尔·邦辰宣布将告别T台，这名巴西超模的女发言人兼姐姐帕特丽夏称吉赛尔希望照顾家庭和特殊的项目。这名34岁的模特一直是法国时尚品牌香奈儿的代言人，还与瓦伦蒂诺、范思哲和路易威登的设计师合作过。有报道称她去年赚了大约4700万美元，4月份她将在圣保罗的时装周上最后一次走猫步。

1 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

2 wailing   

v.哭叫，哀号( wail的现在分词 )；沱

参考例句：

• A police car raced past with its siren wailing. 一辆警车鸣着警报器飞驰而过。
• The little girl was wailing miserably. 那小女孩难过得号啕大哭。

3 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

4 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

5 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

6 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。

7 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

8 scathing   

adj.（言词、文章）严厉的，尖刻的；不留情的adv.严厉地，尖刻地v.伤害，损害（尤指使之枯萎）( scathe的现在分词)

参考例句：

• a scathing attack on the new management 针对新的管理层的猛烈抨击
• Her speech was a scathing indictment of the government's record on crime. 她的演讲强烈指责了政府在犯罪问题上的表现。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

10 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

11 modification   

n.修改，改进，缓和，减轻

参考例句：

• The law,in its present form,is unjust;it needs modification.现行的法律是不公正的，它需要修改。
• The design requires considerable modification.这个设计需要作大的修改。

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

13 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

14 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。

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 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

17 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

18 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

19 impeachment   

n.弹劾；控告；怀疑

参考例句：

• Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。
• The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

20 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。

21 laundering   

n.洗涤（衣等），洗烫（衣等）；洗（钱）v.洗（衣服等），洗烫（衣服等）( launder的现在分词 )；洗（黑钱）（把非法收入改头换面，变为貌似合法的收入）

参考例句：

• Separate the white clothes from the dark clothes before laundering. 洗衣前应当把浅色衣服和深色衣服分开。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was charged with laundering money. 他被指控洗钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 implicated   

adj.密切关联的；牵涉其中的

参考例句：

• These groups are very strongly implicated in the violence. 这些组织与这起暴力事件有着极大的关联。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Having the stolen goods in his possession implicated him in the robbery. 因藏有赃物使他涉有偷盗的嫌疑。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

23 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

24 questionable   

adj.可疑的，有问题的

参考例句：

• There are still a few questionable points in the case.这个案件还有几个疑点。
• Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions.你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。