澳洲新闻 2009-07-03

South Korea is bracing¹ for more missile launches from the North after the hard-line communist state fired four overnight. North Korea fired the short-range missiles off its east coast into the Sea of Japan. It's the first test by the communist state since the UN imposed fresh sanctions last month.

A US soldier has been captured by militants² in Afghanistan for the first time in two years. The US military says the soldier has been missing for four days. News of the kidnapping came as American and Afghan forces launched a major operation against the Taliban in Helmand province. More than 4,000 US troops were involved in the campaign.

French investigators³ have released a report into last month's Air France plane crash which left 238 people dead. They say speed sensors⁴ weren’t to blame for the plane plunging⁵ into the Atlantic while traveling from Rio de Janeiro to Paris.

A landmark⁶ court ruling in India has decriminalized gay-sex between consenting adults. The court found the existing legislation was a violation⁷ of fundamental rights.

And Michael Jackson's ex-wife Debbie Rowe will fight for custody⁸ of the two children she had with the pop star. Just a day after Jackson's will left sole custody of them to his family.

And that's the latest ABC World News.

1 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

2 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。

3 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

5 plunging   

adj.跳进的，突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• War broke out again, plunging the people into misery and suffering. 战祸复发，生灵涂炭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He is plunging into an abyss of despair. 他陷入了绝望的深渊。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

7 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

8 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。