英国新闻听力 68

BBC News with John Jason.

Israel has been continuing intensive air attacks on the Gaza Strip. The Israeli say the raids will continue until Palestinian militants¹ stop firing rockets and mortars² into Southern Israel. Palestinian officials say nearly 230 people have been killed and hundreds more wounded since the strikes began on Saturday. From Jerusalem, Paul Wood reports.

Prums of smoke shot into the air as the attack began. Gaza hasn’t suffered as badly in a single day since the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. There were two intense waves of airstrikes. More than 100 tons of bombs were dropped, Israel said, on dozens of targets. There were many civilian³ casualties. Emergency services were overwhelmed. Bodies were dumped in piles outside the main hospital. Frantic⁴ crowds gathered to look for loved ones among the dead. Hamas and other armed groups have promised revenge. Thousands of rockets have already fallen on Israeli towns bordering Gaza, although with far less effect in Israel’s airstrikes.

Israeli officials said the operation was targeting the Hamas Movement which controls Gaza and that they were trying to avoid civilian death. The Prime Minister Ehud Olmert appealed directly to the people of Gaza.

You, the citizens of Gaza, are not our enemies. Hamas, Jihad, and the other terrorist organizations are your enemies as they are our enemies. They have brought disaster on you and they try to bring disaster to the people of Israel. And it is our common goal to make every possible effort to stop them.

But the spokesman for the Hamas Interior Ministry⁵ in Gaza Ihab al-Ghussein said Israel’s actions were disproportioned.

And we can’t equalize this rockets // action hit by Israel’s strike. In one hour, in less than on hour, there was 150 people killed. We can’t say that this is equal what is going on by the Palestinian faction⁶.

There was swift international reaction to Israeli attacks. The United States calls for Israel to do all it could to protect innocent people, but said Hamas was responsible for renewing violence in the region. The UN Secretary General called for an urgent end to the violence while the Arab League is meeting on Sunday. As Jenny Berry reports.

The Secretary General of the Arab League Amr Moussa said he expected the Israel military operation to continue and Arabs had to decide how best to respond. Meanwhile in the United States, a spokesman for President Bush called on Israel to avoid civilian casualties as it targeted Hamas, but stop short of calling for an end to the airstrikes. And he said Hamas must cease what he called terrorist activities if it wanted to play a part in the future of the Palestinian people.

World News from the BBC.

The army officer who seized power in Guinea earlier this week has adopted a firm tone in his public speech. The officer, Capt Moussa Dadis Camara said he would not tolerate corruption⁷ and that anyone who embezzles⁸ state funds for their own personal benefit would be killed.

Among half a million people whose families were forced to flee Spain during the Civil War and General Franco's subsequent rule have been given the right to apply for Spanish citizenship⁹. People whose mother or farther were Spanish and the grandchildren of those who had to renounce¹⁰ their Spanish nationality now have two years to apply. // reports.

The Spanish civil war in the 1930s and General Franco’s administration caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Spaniards and forced many more into exile across the world. Last year the Spanish parliament enacted¹¹ the 'law of historical memory' to make amends¹² to the victims of the war. Most of those who qualify live in Argentina, Uruguay, Cuba, Chile, Venezuela, Mexico and France. The Spanish government is expecting a huge response to the offer of citizenship and is providing 150 extra staff to deal with applications at consular¹³ offices around the world.

Campaigning is ended for the general election to be held on Monday to restore civilian law to Bangladesh. The two main candidates, Sheikh Hasina and her rival Begun Khaleda Zia crisscrossed the country on the final day to make one last appeal for votes. The Bangladeshi military stepped in two years ago after long-running clashes between the two main parties brought political life in the country to a stalemate.

A Senior Somali official has been shot dead. The Deputy Minister for Reconciliation¹⁴ Ismail Hassan Timir in the transitional government was killed as he got out of his car in the southern city of Baido. Elsewhere in Somalia reports said at least ten people were killed in fighting between rival Islamic militias¹⁵ in the center town of Gurael.

BBC News.

1 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。

2 mortars   

n.迫击炮( mortar的名词复数 )；砂浆；房产；研钵

参考例句：

• They could not move their heavy mortars over the swampy ground. 他们无法把重型迫击炮移过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Where the hell are his mortars? 他有迫击炮吗？ 来自教父部分

3 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

4 frantic   

adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的

参考例句：

• I've had a frantic rush to get my work done.我急急忙忙地赶完工作。
• He made frantic dash for the departing train.他发疯似地冲向正开出的火车。

5 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。

6 faction   

n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争

参考例句：

• Faction and self-interest appear to be the norm.派系之争和自私自利看来非常普遍。
• I now understood clearly that I was caught between the king and the Bunam's faction.我现在完全明白自己已陷入困境，在国王与布纳姆集团之间左右为难。

7 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。

8 embezzles   

v.贪污，盗用（公款）( embezzle的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

9 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

10 renounce   

v.放弃；拒绝承认，宣布与…断绝关系

参考例句：

• She decided to renounce the world and enter a convent.她决定弃绝尘世去当修女。
• It was painful for him to renounce his son.宣布与儿子脱离关系对他来说是很痛苦的。

11 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

12 amends   

n. 赔偿

参考例句：

• He made amends for his rudeness by giving her some flowers. 他送给她一些花，为他自己的鲁莽赔罪。
• This country refuses stubbornly to make amends for its past war crimes. 该国顽固地拒绝为其过去的战争罪行赔罪。

13 consular   

a.领事的

参考例句：

• He has rounded out twenty years in the consular service. 他在领事馆工作已整整20年了。
• Consular invoices are declarations made at the consulate of the importing country. 领事发票是进口国领事馆签发的一种申报书。

14 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

15 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网