VOA常速英语2007年-Blasts Hit Three Northern Indian Cities, Killin

By Anjana Pasricha
New Delhi
23 November 2007

Nearly simultaneous blasts outside courts in three northern Indian cities killed at least 13 people and injured dozens more. As Anjana Pasricha reports from VOA's New Delhi bureau, several cities have suffered bomb attacks in recent years.

Police say the explosions went off around lunchtime Friday within 15 minutes of each other in three cities in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.

In all three cities, Lucknow, Varanasi and Faizabad, the explosions targeted court complexes. Several of those killed or injured were lawyers. Lucknow is the capital of Uttar Pradesh state. Varanasi is one of India's holiest Hindu cities. Faizabad is the twin city of Ayodhya, which has been a flashpoint for Hindu-Muslim tensions ever since an ancient Muslim mosque¹ was destroyed by a Hindu mob 16 years ago.

Police described the explosions in Varanasi and Faizabad as powerful ones. Television footage showed wreckage² strewn in the areas hit by the blasts, and wounded being carried to hospitals.

India's junior federal home minister, Sriprakash Jaiswal, said the fact that the blasts took place around the same time proved it was a conspiracy³.

He said the motive⁴ behind the blasts could be to disrupt communal⁵ harmony in the country, to spread terror and to create an atmosphere of fear. Minister Jaiswal said the devices might have been planted in courts because big crowds are usually present outside courthouses.

A spokesman for the Uttar Pradesh Bar Association speculated that the courts might have been targeted because lawyers in the state had decided⁶ earlier this year not to defend any terror suspects.

Several towns and cities across the country have been hit by blasts in recent years. In August, explosions killed 43 people in the southern city of Hyderabad. In Mumbai last year, more than 200 people died when bombs were placed inside commuter⁷ trains.

Authorities blamed the attacks on Pakistan-based Islamic groups, which have waged a separatist insurgency⁸ in Indian Kashmir for nearly two decades. Officials say that these militant⁹ groups want to spark riots or clashes between India's majority Hindu community and minority Muslims.

1 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。

2 wreckage   

n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏

参考例句：

• They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
• New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。

3 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

4 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

5 communal   

adj.公有的，公共的，公社的，公社制的

参考例句：

• There was a communal toilet on the landing for the four flats.在楼梯平台上有一处公共卫生间供4套公寓使用。
• The toilets and other communal facilities were in a shocking state.厕所及其他公共设施的状况极其糟糕。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 commuter   

n.(尤指市郊之间)乘公交车辆上下班者

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。
• She accidentally stepped on his foot on a crowded commuter train. 她在拥挤的通勤列车上不小心踩到了他的脚。

8 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

9 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。