新奇事件簿 沙特受袭 油价飙升

Oil prices soared on Monday after the drone attacks on oil plants in Saudi Arabia. Prices saw their biggest rise in a decade. At one point, prices shot up by nearly 20 per cent. This is the biggest one-day rise since the 1990-91 Gulf¹ War. Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin² Salman said the drone attack on Saudi Arabia's Abqaiq oil plant cut the kingdom's oil production in half. The attacks will cut the world's daily oil production by five per cent. The Bloomberg news agency said it could take weeks for Saudi to repair the damage. During this time, people could see higher gasoline prices at the pumps, especially in Asia. People may also have to pay higher prices for food and other goods.

沙特阿拉伯的石油工厂遭袭击后，周一油价飙升。价格出现了10年来的最大涨幅，油价一度飙升近20%。这是自1990-91年海湾战争以来的最大单日涨幅。沙特阿拉伯能源部长阿卜杜勒-阿齐兹·本·萨勒曼王子称沙特阿拉伯Abqaiq石油加工厂遭遇无人机袭击，导致该国石油产量减半。这些袭击将使全球石油日产量减少5%。彭博新闻社表示，沙特可能需要数周时间才能修复损失。在这段期间，人们可以在加油站看到更高的汽油价格，尤其是在亚洲。人们可能还要为食品和其他商品支付更高的价格。

Yemen's Houthi group has claimed responsibility for the attacks in Saudi Arabia. The group said the attacks were because of Saudi Arabia's attacks on rebel groups in Yemen. Iran's President Hassan Rouhani supported the Houthi claim. He called the attack an act of self defense³. He said: "Yemeni people are exercising their legitimate⁴ right of defense. The attack was a reciprocal response to years of Saudi aggression⁵ against Yemen." However, an Arab coalition⁶ says there is evidence that the weapons used to strike the Saudi oil plants were made by Iran. U.S. officials say satellite images suggest the attacks came from either Iraq or Iran and not Yemen. Iranian officials called the U.S. allegations "maximum lies".

也门胡塞组织声称对沙特阿拉伯的袭击事件负责。该组织称发动袭击是因为沙特阿拉伯对也门叛军组织发动的袭击。伊朗总统哈桑·鲁哈尼支持胡塞组织的声明。他称这次袭击是自卫行为。他表示：“也门人民正在行使他们的正当防卫权。这次袭击是对沙特多年来侵略也门的回应。”但一个阿拉伯联盟称有证据表明，用来袭击沙特石油工厂的武器是伊朗制造的。美国官员称卫星图像显示，袭击来自伊拉克或伊朗，而不是也门。伊朗官员称美国的指控是“最大的谎言”。

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

5 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

6 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。