Hourly News 2012 08 13

 

 

Fugitive¹ gunman kills police officer in SW China

 

Police in Chongqing are on the hunt for an armed robber accused of gunning down a police officer yesterday.

The suspect is believed to be Zhou Kehua.

He's the prime suspect in the murder of 9 different people since 2004.

The 42-year-old's M-O is to target people withdrawing money from banks.

Zhou has a 5.4-million yuan bounty² on his head.

Sunday's murder of a police officer in Chongqing follows the murder of another person on Friday.

The victim in Friday's attack is one of 3 people shot while withdrawing money from an ATM.

 

 

6.2-magnitude quake hits Xinjiang -- CENC

 

Xinjiang has been rattled³ by a sizeable earthquake.

The 6.2-magnitude quaker hit the western Hotan region of Xinjiang shortly before 7 last night.

It hit at a depth of around 30-kilometers, meaning the seismic⁴ tremors⁵ were not that strong on the surface.

No casualties have been reported.

The initial quake has been followed up by at least 2 moderate aftershocks.

 

 

Egypt's president names vice⁶ president, new military leadership

 

There's been a shake up at the top of the Egyptian hierarchy⁷.

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has removed military chief Hussein Tantawi.

He's being replaced by 58-year old Abdel el-Seisy.

Seisy had been the head of Egypt's northern division forces.

Tantawi and his deputy, who have been forced into retirement⁸, officially remain on as advisors⁹ to Morsi.

At the same time, Morsi has lifted Mahmoud Mekki, a former judge, to the post of vice-President.

 

 

6 militants¹¹ killed in Sinai by Egyptian troops

 

At least 6 militants have been killed in assaults by the Egyptian army in the Sinai Peninsula.

The militants have been killed in raids in a village near the North Sinai provincial¹² capital of al-Arish.

The killings¹³ come as part of a broader security sweep being conducted by the Egyptian military, following a militant¹⁰ attack just over a week ago which left 16 border guards dead.

The security situation in the Sinai has been deteriorating¹⁴ since the fall of Hosni Mubarak.

The Sinai region has long-been a hotbed of smuggling¹⁵.

The region is where Israel, Gaza and Egypt meet.

 

 

Arab foreign ministers' meeting on Syria in Jeddah postponed¹⁶

 

Arab League foreign ministers have postponed a meeting about Syria, which was supposed to take place in Saudi Arabia.

No reason has been given for the delay.

The foreign ministers had been slated¹⁷ to discuss the selection of a new envoy¹⁸ replace Kofi Annan.

The UN monitoring mission in Syria, which includes 150 observers, is due to expire in less than a week.

The UN Security Council is set to discuss the possible continuation of the mission on Thursday.

Russia has been calling for an extension of the mission.

The United States has been expressing skepticism about its support for UN monitoring.

The US has been taking steps outside the UN.

The US government is working with Turkey on detailed¹⁹ plans to support the Syrian opposition²⁰.

 

 

Big fire breaks out in London ahead of Olympic closing ceremony

 

One of the largest fires in recent memory in London has eclipsed the closing ceremony for some 200 fire fighters.

The blaze broke out in the early afternoon on Sunday in east London.

It's engulfed²¹ a local recycling center.

There have been no reports of any casualties.

The prevailing²² winds have been blowing the smoke from the blaze away from the closing ceremonies for the London Olympic Games.

 

 

Policeman killed in Nigeria church attack

 

A police officer has been killed in northwest Nigeria during an attack on a church.

The officer had reportedly been contracted to protect the church.

The sound of the gunfire outside the church alerted the worshipers, who subsequently closed the gates.

Attacks on Christian²³ churches in northern Nigeria are becoming more frequent.

The radical²⁴ Islamic group, Boko Haram, has been responsible for most of the attacks.

 

 

10 killed, almost 100 injured in Brazilian highway accident

 

At least 10 people are dead and close to another 100 injured, after a massive road accident in Brazil.

The crash took place overnight on Saturday, after two buses collided.

A van, car and motorcycle then plowed²⁵ into the debris²⁶ of the first accident.

6 of the injured are in hospital in serious condition.

 

 

China's trade surplus to narrow in August

 

New analysis from the Bank of Communications is suggesting this country's trade surplus is going to narrow through this month through a slowdown in export growth.

The bank's financial research center says the overall slowdown of the global economy is the main reason for the slow down.

At the same time, the Bank of Communications is not expecting sharp drop in exports.

Chinese export growth rose by 1-percent in July.

That represents 6-month low.

Export growth in June was up 11 percent.

 

 

MOF to float 22 bln yuan in local gov't bonds

 

The Ministry²⁷ of Finance is poised²⁸ to issue 22 billion yuan worth of local government bonds later this week.

The ministry is going to issue the 5-year bonds on behalf of the cities of Tianjin and Xiamen, as well as the provinces of Jiangxi, Shandong, Henan and Hunan on Friday.

The bonds will become tradable in a week after they're issued.

The Ministry of Finance is still responsible for issuing most local government bonds, save for a few exceptions.

1 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。

2 bounty   

n.慷慨的赠予物，奖金；慷慨，大方；施与

参考例句：

• He is famous for his bounty to the poor.他因对穷人慷慨相助而出名。
• We received a bounty from the government.我们收到政府给予的一笔补助金。

3 rattled   

慌乱的，恼火的

参考例句：

• The truck jolted and rattled over the rough ground. 卡车嘎吱嘎吱地在凹凸不平的地面上颠簸而行。
• Every time a bus went past, the windows rattled. 每逢公共汽车经过这里，窗户都格格作响。

4 seismic   

a.地震的，地震强度的

参考例句：

• Earthquakes produce two types of seismic waves.地震产生两种地震波。
• The latest seismic activity was also felt in northern Kenya.肯尼亚北部也感觉到了最近的地震活动。

5 tremors   

震颤( tremor的名词复数 )； 战栗； 震颤声； 大地的轻微震动

参考例句：

• The story was so terrible that It'sent tremors down my spine. 这故事太可怕，它使我不寒而栗。
• The story was so terrible that it sent tremors down my spine. 这故事太可怕，它使我不寒而栗。

6 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

7 hierarchy   

n.等级制度；统治集团，领导层

参考例句：

• There is a rigid hierarchy of power in that country.那个国家有一套严密的权力等级制度。
• She's high up in the management hierarchy.她在管理阶层中地位很高。

8 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

9 advisors   

n.顾问，劝告者( advisor的名词复数 )；（指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• The governors felt that they were being strung along by their advisors. 地方长官感到他们一直在受顾问们的愚弄。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• We will consult together with advisors about her education. 我们将一起和专家商议她的教育事宜。 来自互联网

10 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。

11 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。

12 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

13 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。

14 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

15 smuggling   

n.走私

参考例句：

• Some claimed that the docker's union fronted for the smuggling ring.某些人声称码头工人工会是走私集团的掩护所。
• The evidence pointed to the existence of an international smuggling network.证据表明很可能有一个国际走私网络存在。

16 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

17 slated   

用石板瓦盖( slate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Yuki is working up an in-home phonics program slated for Thursdays, and I'm drilling her on English conversation at dinnertime. Yuki每周四还有一次家庭语音课。我在晚餐时训练她的英语口语。
• Bromfield was slated to become U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. 布罗姆菲尔德被提名为美国农业部长。

18 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。

19 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

20 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。

21 engulfed   

v.吞没，包住( engulf的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was engulfed by a crowd of reporters. 他被一群记者团团围住。
• The little boat was engulfed by the waves. 小船被波浪吞没了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 prevailing   

adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的

参考例句：

• She wears a fashionable hair style prevailing in the city.她的发型是这个城市流行的款式。
• This reflects attitudes and values prevailing in society.这反映了社会上盛行的态度和价值观。

23 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

24 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

25 plowed   

v.耕( plow的过去式和过去分词 )；犁耕；费力穿过

参考例句：

• They plowed nearly 100,000 acres of virgin moorland. 他们犁了将近10万英亩未开垦的高沼地。 来自辞典例句
• He plowed the land and then sowed the seeds. 他先翻土，然后播种。 来自辞典例句

26 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

27 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。

28 poised   

a.摆好姿势不动的

参考例句：

• The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
• Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。