CNN 2011-03-04

Thanks to Mr. Prichard's students for that amazing introduction. Thanks to all of you for checking out this Wednesday edition of CNN Student News. I am Carl Azuz. Let's get going.

First up, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the country of Libya is at a crossroads: could become a peaceful democracy; could face a drawn-out civil war. Right now, the situation is tense. There were reports that forces that are loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi tried to regain¹ control of a town near the capital that's under the control of people who are against Colonel Gadhafi. The attempt was unsuccessful. But an official close to Gadhafi denied this even happened.

In fact, during an interview with ABC News, Gadhafi denied using any force against his own people. He even denied the existence of any protests against his government at all. Obviously, something is going on in Libya. The question a lot of people are asking is, will the U.S. get involved, and how? Jill Dougherty looks at some of the options.

The U.S. calls it a reign² of violence by Colonel Moammar Gadhafi and his cohorts, and it's setting in motion a range of options to stop it.

Nothing is off the table so long as the Libyan government continues to threaten and kill Libyan citizens.

The administration already is taking steps to help the thousands of Libyans fleeing the bloodshed. Refugees are crossing the borders into neighboring countries of Egypt and Tunisia, nations that themselves have just undergone their own revolutions.

We are dispatching two expert humanitarian³ teams to Tunisia and to Egypt.

The U.S., along with other countries, is bracing⁴ for rescue missions, preparing medical and food supplies. Blocking funds that Gadhafi could use to continue his violent crackdown, the Treasury⁵ Department has frozen at least $30 billion in Libyan government assets, the largest amount ever blocked, it says, under a sanctions program.

Gadhafi has lost the legitimacy⁶ to govern, and it is time for him to go without further violence or delay.

The U.S. ambassador is reaching out to opposition⁷ groups in Libya, assessing who might lead up a post-Gadhafi government. But some senators tell CNN the U.S. should help the rebels directly.

No-fly zones, recognition of the revolutionary government -- the citizens' government -- and support for them with both humanitarian assistance, and I would provide them with arms.

Administration officials say it's way too early to talk about arming the opposition, but they are considering the idea of a no-fly zone. A former State Department legal adviser⁸, however, says that's complicated.

Legally, there is no authority for the United States or other countries to do that under international law unless authorized⁹ by the Security Council. And politically, that could be quite problematic as well for the United States or NATO, to begin shooting down Libyan aircraft, even in the face of the things that Gadhafi is doing against his own nationals.

1 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

2 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

3 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

4 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。

5 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

6 legitimacy   

n.合法，正当

参考例句：

• The newspaper was directly challenging the government's legitimacy.报纸直接质疑政府的合法性。
• Managing from the top down,we operate with full legitimacy.我们进行由上而下的管理有充分的合法性。

7 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

8 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

9 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。