[1] President Bush says the US is working toward a strong UN resolution on North Korea. This comes as the United Nations is weighing sanctions against North Korea for its reported nuclear test. The US, Britain and France are seeking a resolution that makes sanctions mandatory and opens the possibility of military enforcement.

[2] Iraqi insurgents are taking responsibility for a series of explosions at a US base in southern Baghdad. A mortar round detonated an ammo dump of tank and artillery shells that shook buildings miles away.

[3] Authorities in Burlington, Vermont are continuing their search for a missing college student. Police think 21-year-old Michelle Garner-Quinn disappeared under suspicious circumstances on her way to meet friends at a bar near the University of Vermont campus.

[4] Thai authorities seized a truckload of Siamese crocodiles and croc skins being smuggled into the country from Cambodia. Crocodile skin is in high demand on the black market. And trafficking of the endangered animal is common in the region.

WORDS IN THE NEWS


1. mortar: n. Short-range artillery piece with a short barrel and low muzzle velocity that fires an explosive projectile in a high-arched trajectory.【军】迫击炮

2. detonate: v. explode or cause to explode

3 ammo dump: (=ammunition dump ) a military storage facility for live ammunition and explosives

4.truckload: n. full cargo of a truck; minimum weight required to ship at truckload rates

5. croc:n. (Informal) crocodile