voa标准英语2008年-Sporadic Gunfire, Bomb Blasts as Mumbai Siege C

Clashes between Indian security forces and the remaining terrorists that launched a multi pronged assault on Mumbai continued into the night as authorities slowly regained¹ control of the city. Raymond Thibodeaux has this report from Mumbai where explosions and gunfire rocked the city for a third day.

The southern tip of Mumbai, the heart of the city's tourist district, was turned into a battle zone as police tried to capture or kill the last of the terrorists.
　

Indian soldiers aim a grenade launcher at part of the facade2 of the Taj Mahal hotel in Mumbai,28 Nov 2008

At the historic Taj hotel in the southern tip of the city late Friday, the air was filled with the sound of grenades, sporadic³ machine-gun fire and helicopters hovering⁴ overhead. Indian special forces went room to room in an effort to end the three-day siege by militants⁵ who rampaged through the streets of Mumbai and took hostages in two posh Mumbai hotels and at a Jewish community center.

By late afternoon, Indian commandos had freed another six hostages, who were escorted to the back of the Taj into a waiting ambulance. None of them appeared to be injured, just shaken up and hungry after more than two days with almost no food.

Indian security forces so far have freed at least 200 hostages at the Taj. It is still unclear how many gunmen were involved in the assualt on the building.

Security officials have confirmed that several foreigners were killed and more than 20 injured. It is known that among the dead: three Germans, one Japanese, one Canadian and one Australian.

Firefighters and ambulances were rushed to the Taj late Friday as a fresh column of smoke could be seen rising from the luxury hotel's roof.

Four bystanders were hit by gunfire near the front of the Taj where many journalists have gathered to cover the siege. One of those injured was a journalist for the French Press Agency.
　

An Indian commando comes down a rope to reach the top of Nariman House, 28 Nov 2008

Elsewhere in the city, loud blasts and sporadic gunfire erupted at the Nariman House as Indian security forces worked to end the hostage standoff at a Jewish outreach center. A security official told Indian television that commandoes found bodies of what are believed to be terrorists and hostages in the center.

With Mumbai as the financial gateway⁶ to India, many of the hostages that had been held at the luxury hotels were in India on business.

As the siege began, many of their companies apparently⁷ called in crisis consultants⁸ like Sanjay Vaswani to help the hostages through their ordeal⁹ and upon their eventual¹⁰ release. He declined to give the name of the company that had called him in.

"The eight people we were in charge of were glad to be out. It showed in their faces they were tired," he said.

So far, it is unclear exactly how many people have been killed since the coordinated¹¹ attacks began but authorities said the number is believed to be at least 140 and could go higher once security forces are able to slowly go through the devastated¹² buildings where the fighting took place.

1 regained   

复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• The majority of the people in the world have regained their liberty. 世界上大多数人已重获自由。
• She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise. 她犹豫片刻，但很快恢复了镇静。

2 facade   

n.(建筑物的)正面，临街正面；外表

参考例句：

• The entrance facade consists of a large full height glass door.入口正面有一大型全高度玻璃门。
• If you look carefully,you can see through Bob's facade.如果你仔细观察，你就能看穿鲍勃的外表。

3 sporadic   

adj.偶尔发生的 [反]regular；分散的

参考例句：

• The sound of sporadic shooting could still be heard.仍能听见零星的枪声。
• You know this better than I.I received only sporadic news about it.你们比我更清楚，而我听到的只是零星消息。

4 hovering   

鸟( hover的现在分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫

参考例句：

• The helicopter was hovering about 100 metres above the pad. 直升机在离发射台一百米的上空盘旋。
• I'm hovering between the concert and the play tonight. 我犹豫不决今晚是听音乐会还是看戏。

5 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。

6 gateway   

n.大门口，出入口，途径，方法

参考例句：

• Hard work is the gateway to success.努力工作是通往成功之路。
• A man collected tolls at the gateway.一个人在大门口收通行费。

7 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

8 consultants   

顾问( consultant的名词复数 )； 高级顾问医生，会诊医生

参考例句：

• a firm of management consultants 管理咨询公司
• There're many consultants in hospital. 医院里有很多会诊医生。

9 ordeal   

n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验

参考例句：

• She managed to keep her sanity throughout the ordeal.在那场磨难中她始终保持神志正常。
• Being lost in the wilderness for a week was an ordeal for me.在荒野里迷路一星期对我来说真是一场磨难。

10 eventual   

adj.最后的，结局的，最终的

参考例句：

• Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
• Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。

11 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

12 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。