澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2011-11-17

 There are growing signs the uprising in Syria could be sliding into armed conflict. Army defectors have destroyed part of an air force base near the capital Damascus. Arab League nations meeting in Morocco have carried out their threat to suspend Syria's membership and impose sanctions. Syrian government supporters have responded by attacking Morocco's embassy with eggs and stones.

 

Technocrats¹ have replaced politicians in Italy's new cabinet. Italy's Prime Minister Mario Monti has appointed non-political experts and academics to help him steer² the country through its debt crisis. Mr Monti has kept the key finance portfolio³ for himself.

 

Fair Work Australia has suspended industrial action by Victoria's nurses for 90 days. The pay dispute has closed almost 1,000 public hospital beds and delayed hundreds of operations. The industrial umpire ruled the dispute was threatening patient safety and has ordered the nurses to reopen the beds by nine o'clock this morning.

 

Facebook says it's removed most of the pornographic and violent images posted as part of a spam attack. Thousands of the website's 800 million users had complained about the pictures over recent days. The company is blaming vulnerability in a browser⁴ for the incident.

 

And Afghan President Hamid Karzai has told a meeting of tribal⁵ elders that a security pact⁶ with the United States is in the best interests of both nations, but it comes with conditions. President Karzai has ruled out night raids, searches of Afghan homes and US-run detention⁷ centres.

1 technocrats   

n.技术专家，专家政治论者( technocrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Few business barons remained. They were replaced by "technocrats," who became the heads of corporations. 企业巨头所剩无几，大多已被“技术专家”所代替，这些人成了公司的领导。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• However, bankers called the technocrats' bluff and proceeded to lend with gusto. 但是，银行家们称技术专家官员不过在虚张声势，并且还会乐观的继续借贷业务。 来自互联网

2 steer   

vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶

参考例句：

• If you push the car, I'll steer it.如果你来推车，我就来驾车。
• It's no use trying to steer the boy into a course of action that suits you.想说服这孩子按你的方式行事是徒劳的。

3 portfolio   

n.公事包；文件夹；大臣及部长职位

参考例句：

• He remembered her because she was carrying a large portfolio.他因为她带着一个大公文包而记住了她。
• He resigned his portfolio.他辞去了大臣职务。

4 browser   

n.浏览者

参考例句：

• View edits in a web browser.在浏览器中看编辑的效果。
• I think my browser has a list of shareware links.我想在浏览器中会有一系列的共享软件链接。

5 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

6 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。

7 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。