NPR 2010-09-20

A huge misunderstanding. That's how Sarah Shourd explains her experience being held on espionage¹ charges in an Iranian prison. She was released last week after 13 months of detention² and arrived back home in the US today. She's especially worried about her two companions that are still being held.

"Shane and Josh do not deserve to be in prison one day longer than I was. We committed no crime, and we are not spies."

Shourd says the three were hiking in a popular tourist area in Iraq's Kurdistan region and had no idea they were so close to Iraq's border with Iran. Iranian officials accused them of intentionally³ straying into Iranian territory.

BP's busted⁴ oil well in the Gulf⁵ of Mexico has been declared effectively killed. Eileen Fleming of member station WWNO reports the government point man on the response says it no longer poses a threat.

National Incident Commander Thad Allen says pressure testing shows the well is now dead after cement was pumped into the bottom of the well about three miles under the surface. The news comes five months after the well exploded, killing⁶ 11 workers and triggering an oil spill that polluted the Gulf with more than four million barrels of crude. Many in Gulf Coast communities are worried that the government could consider the crisis over. Oil continues washing the shore in Louisiana and researchers have found oil on the bottom of the gulf and in the water column. Allen says the government has committed to an aggressive cleanup. For NPR News, I'm Eileen Fleming.

Police in the Indian capital of New Delhi have launched an intense search for two men who reportedly opened fire on a group of foreign tourists at one of the city's best-known sites. As Vir Singh reports, two Taiwanese men were injured in the attack.

Police say the attackers drove up to the 17th-century mosque⁷, the Jama Masjid, in the crowded older part of the city on a motorbike. According to eyewitnesses⁸, the men were wearing helmets and raincoats when they opened fire indiscriminately, then escaped into one of the many alleys⁹ adjoining the mosque. The incident comes weeks after extra police and security forces have been deployed¹⁰ in many parts of New Delhi ahead of the Commonwealth¹¹ Games, which are due to begin early next month. The games have already been hit by corruption¹² charges and by delays. The city's top elected official has asked people not to panic as police investigate the attack. For NPR News, I'm Vir Singh in New Delhi.

The huge search in Southern California for members of a cult-like group is over. Authorities say the 13 who were missing have been found alive and well in a park after officials received a tip. The five adults and eight children were first reported missing by their families who worried they might try to commit mass suicide. The group apparently¹³ left behind evidence that they were awaiting the rapture¹⁴ or some other world-changing event.

This is NPR News from Washington.

Hurricane force winds are already being felt in Bermuda, where Hurricane Igor is expected to arrive later today. The storm is not as strong as it once was, but still packs a punch with winds of 85 miles an hour. Authorities are afraid it could still be one of the worst hurricanes that ever hit the island. Residents have boarded up their homes; the roads are deserted¹⁵.

Hundreds of Armenian Christians¹⁶ gathered at a 10th-century church in southeast Turkey today for the first religious service in nearly a century. NPR's Peter Kenyon reports from Akdamar Island.

The 10th-century Church of the Holy Cross has been converted into a museum, but the Turkish government approved this reading of the divine liturgy¹⁷ as a step toward healing relations with neighboring Armenia. There appears to be no imminent¹⁸ solution to a nearly century-old dispute over whether the World War I mass killings¹⁹ of Armenians by Ottoman Turks should be called genocide. Much of the world says 'yes'; Turkey says 'no'. Critics in Armenia protested that today's service is little more than a publicity²⁰ stunt²¹, but those who traveled to this remote historic stone church said this is a positive step, however small, and should be celebrated²². Turkey says it would like to see this service become an annual event. Peter Kenyon, NPR News, Akdamar Island in southeastern Turkey.

Pope Benedict is wrapping up his four-day trip to Britain. Today, he expressed shame and horror over the wartime suffering caused by his German homeland during World War II and said he was moved to mark the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the prolonged air bombing campaign against Britain which killed tens of thousands of civilians²³.

I'm Nancy Lyons, NPR News in Washington.
 

1 espionage   

n.间谍行为，谍报活动

参考例句：

• The authorities have arrested several people suspected of espionage.官方已经逮捕了几个涉嫌从事间谍活动的人。
• Neither was there any hint of espionage in Hanley's early life.汉利的早期生活也毫无进行间谍活动的迹象。

2 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

3 intentionally   

ad.故意地，有意地

参考例句：

• I didn't say it intentionally. 我是无心说的。
• The local authority ruled that he had made himself intentionally homeless and was therefore not entitled to be rehoused. 当地政府裁定他是有意居无定所，因此没有资格再获得提供住房。

4 busted   

adj. 破产了的，失败了的，被降级的，被逮捕的，被抓到的 动词bust的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• You are so busted! 你被当场逮住了！
• It was money troubles that busted up their marriage. 是金钱纠纷使他们的婚姻破裂了。

5 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

6 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

7 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

8 eyewitnesses   

目击者( eyewitness的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The examination of all the eyewitnesses took a week. 对所有证人的质询用了一周的时间。
• Several eyewitnesses testified that they saw the officers hit Miller in the face. 几位目击证人证明他们看见那几个警官打了米勒的脸。

9 alleys   

胡同，小巷( alley的名词复数 )； 小径

参考例句：

• I followed him through a maze of narrow alleys. 我紧随他穿过一条条迂迴曲折的窄巷。
• The children lead me through the maze of alleys to the edge of the city. 孩子们领我穿过迷宫一般的街巷，来到城边。

10 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

11 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

12 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。

13 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

14 rapture   

n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜

参考例句：

• His speech was received with rapture by his supporters.他的演说受到支持者们的热烈欢迎。
• In the midst of his rapture,he was interrupted by his father.他正欢天喜地，被他父亲打断了。

15 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

16 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

17 liturgy   

n.礼拜仪式

参考例句：

• A clergyman read the liturgy from the prayer-book.一名牧师照着祈祷书念祷文。
• The mass is the church a kind of liturgy.弥撒是教会的一种礼拜仪式。

18 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

19 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。

20 publicity   

n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告

参考例句：

• The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
• He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事，只当它是一种宣传手法。

21 stunt   

n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长

参考例句：

• Lack of the right food may stunt growth.缺乏适当的食物会阻碍发育。
• Right up there is where the big stunt is taking place.那边将会有惊人的表演。

22 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

23 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。