VOA常速英语2007年-Al-Qaida in North Africa Claims Responsibility

By VOA News
11 December 2007

Al-Qaida's North African wing has claimed responsibility for two deadly car bomb blasts Tuesday outside U.N. offices and a government building in Algeria's capital.

Algerian government officials say at least 26 people were killed and 177 others wounded in the blasts in Algiers. Hospital officials have put the death toll¹ at more than 60.

Among the dead and wounded are students who were on a school bus near the constitutional court building, the site of one of the explosions.

The blasts destroyed the offices of the U.N. Development Program and damaged the offices of the U.N. High Commissioner² for Refugees.

Algerian Interior Minister Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni says a suicide bomber³ was responsible for one of the attacks.

A U.N. spokeswoman in New York, Marie Okabe says 11 U.N. staff members are believed to be dead, and others are still missing.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned⁴ the attacks in the "strongest possible terms."

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and other European leaders condemned the bombings.

The White House called the blasts a case of "senseless violence" and said they were carried out by "enemies of humanity who attacked the innocent." The U.S. State Department says the United States stands with the government of Algeria, and is ready to provide assistance.

Al-Qaida's North African wing says it carried out Tuesday's bombings in a statement posted on a militant⁵ Web site.

Algerian militants⁶ linked to al-Qaida have carried out a series of attacks in the country this year, including suicide bombings that killed 33 people in Algiers in April.

Algerian Islamists rose up against the government in 1992 when it scrapped⁷ elections that an Islamic party was poised⁸ to win.

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.

1 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

2 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

3 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

4 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

5 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。

6 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。

7 scrapped   

废弃(scrap的过去式与过去分词)； 打架

参考例句：

• This machine is so old that it will soon have to be scrapped. 这架机器太旧，快报废了。
• It had been thought that passport controls would be scrapped. 人们曾认为会放开护照管制。

8 poised   

a.摆好姿势不动的

参考例句：

• The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋，准备俯冲。
• Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张，手悬在电话机上。