NPR 2011-05-03

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

President Barack Obama, less than 24 hours after announcing the death of Osama bin¹ Laden², says this is a good day.

"The world is safer. It is a better place because of the death of Osama bin Laden."

The president speaking at a ceremony, awarding the Medal of Honor posthumously³ to two veterans of the Korean War. He drew on the moment to express pride in the patriotism⁴ and sacrifices Americans made to get the man accused of ordering the 9/11 attacks. Bin Laden was killed in firefight with US commandos at his Pakistan compound yesterday. More details are now emerging about that covert⁵ operation. NPR's Tom Gjelten reports US officials say several women and children were with the al-Qaeda leader at the time of the attack, and one woman may have been killed being used as a human shield.

Osama bin Laden was known to prefer having women and children around him, whether for company or to shield him from attack. US officials say one of his wives lived with him, and she may have been the woman who died during the shootout. A defense⁶ official says one of the men killed in the raid was firing from behind the woman. Two other women were injured during the raid. The others plus the children were uninjured. The US forces who carried out the raid took bin Laden's body with them when they left, but everyone else, including the women and children, were left behind. Tom Gjelten, NPR News, Washington.

Around the globe, reactions are mixed to the death of the Saudi-born bin Laden. NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson offers this picture out of Saudi Arabia.

And there certainly was some offense⁷ taken at the notion that non-Muslims would kill a Muslim like bin Laden because after all he was a hero to many Saudis prior to his becoming involved or creating al-Qaeda and starting terrorist attacks.

NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson.

On Capitol Hill as elsewhere, leaders are praising the operation, but NPR's Nina Totenberg says there remain important unanswered questions.

Senate Armed Services Community Chairman Carl Levin said the biggest unanswered questions are in Pakistan.

"I think that the Pakistani army and intelligence have a lot of questions to answer. Given the location, the length of time, and the apparent fact that this facility was actually built for bin Laden."

Those answers may not come in public, but Levin's statement is an indication that many in Congress want answers. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington.

Mixed reactions today out of parts of the Middle East on news that the US killed Osama bin Laden. Gaza's Hamas rulers are condemning⁸ the US attack on Pakistani soil, calling it another example of "American oppression." However, Hamas's Palestinian rivals in control of the West Bank are congratulating the US.

At last check on Wall Street, the Dow was down four points at 12,807.

This is NPR News.

A steady stream of visitors is flocking to the Flight 93 Memorial outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Scott Detrow of member station WITF in Harrisburg is on the scene.

The Flight 93 crash site is a construction zone right now. The first phase of a permanent memorial is set to open up later this year. Everly Hoover of Lansdale, Pennsylvania was one of the people drawn⁹ to the site today. She said she felt different, more emotional than she has in previous visits.

"And I know it's not over, but the one who was really the mastermind behind it is dead."

Someone taped the front page of a newspaper announcing bin Laden's death to the fence surrounding the site. Another person hung a Navy Seals flag to honor the special forces team that killed the al-Qaeda leader. For NPR News, I'm Scott Detrow in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

Nearly a week after tornadoes¹⁰ tore through the Southern US, emergency teams are still searching for victims, including in Alabama, but Andrew Yeager of member station of WBHM in Birmingham says at least power is now returning to some areas for the first time since the storms hit.

Electricity is now running to hospitals and government buildings in Huntsville, Alabama, but the situation is far from normal. Streetlights still aren't working. Some restaurants and gas stations are using generators¹¹. Schools there won't reopen until at least Wednesday. A 120-member urban searching rescue team from Louisiana is headed to Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Hundreds are still missing in that town, and while Tuscaloosa's mayor says crime hasn't increased since the storm, nighttime curfew has been extended through the weekend. Four people, however in the northwestern corner of the state, have been charged with looting. They were caught stealing from homes after presenting themselves relief workers. For NPR News, I'm Andrew Yeager in Birmingham.

1 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

2 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

3 posthumously   

adv.于死后，于身后；于著作者死后出版地

参考例句：

• He was confirmed posthumously as a member of the Chinese Communist Party. 他被追认为中国共产党党员。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Her last book was published posthumously in 1948. 她最后的一本书在她死后于1948 年出版了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 patriotism   

n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• They obtained money under the false pretenses of patriotism.他们以虚伪的爱国主义为借口获得金钱。

5 covert   

adj.隐藏的；暗地里的

参考例句：

• We should learn to fight with enemy in an overt and covert way.我们应学会同敌人做公开和隐蔽的斗争。
• The army carried out covert surveillance of the building for several months.军队对这座建筑物进行了数月的秘密监视。

6 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。

7 offense   

n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪

参考例句：

• I hope you will not take any offense at my words. 对我讲的话请别见怪。
• His words gave great offense to everybody present.他的发言冲犯了在场的所有人。

8 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

9 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

10 tornadoes   

n.龙卷风，旋风( tornado的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Tornadoes, severe earthquakes, and plagues create wide spread havoc. 龙卷风、大地震和瘟疫成普遍的毁坏。 来自互联网
• Meteorologists are at odds over the working of tornadoes. 气象学者对龙卷风的运动方式看法不一。 来自互联网

11 generators   

n.发电机，发生器( generator的名词复数 )；电力公司

参考例句：

• The factory's emergency generators were used during the power cut. 工厂应急发电机在停电期间用上了。
• Power can be fed from wind generators into the electricity grid system. 电力可以从风力发电机流入输电网。 来自《简明英汉词典》