VOA慢速英语2014 奥巴马谴责斩首美国记者行为

 

Obama Condemns¹ US Journalist's Execution 奥巴马谴责斩首美国记者行为

President Barack Obama has condemned² the Islamic State militants³ who killed an American reporter and threatened to kill another one.

The militants executed James Foley and recorded the act on video. They released the video on the Internet Tuesday.  On Wednesday, Mr. Obama said, "the whole world is appalled⁴ by the brutal⁵ murder of James Foley.” He said the United States will continue to do what it must to protect its people.

The video also showed a second hostage, American reporter Steven Joel Sotloff, who the militants threatened to kill.

The Sunni extremist group said it had killed Mr. Foley in reaction to U.S. airstrikes in northern Iraq. The airstrikes helped Kurdish and Iraqi forces regain⁶ control of Mosul dam from Islamic State militants.

James Foley was 40 years old.  He disappeared on November 22, 2012, after gunmen kidnapped him in Syria. He had reported in the Middle East for five years, for organizations including the GlobalPost.

Joel Sotloff has been missing since August 2013. He reported for Time magazine and the Christian⁷ Science Monitor.

Peaceful Protests in Ferguson

Peaceful protests took place Tuesday night in Ferguson, Missouri. Demonstrators were protesting the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer on August ninth. Many of the almost nightly protests have turned violent.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder⁸ arrived in Ferguson on Wednesday to meet with community leaders, local officials and FBI investigators⁹.  Mr. Holder is to discuss the federal civil rights investigation¹⁰ of the shooting.

Liberia Uses Tear Gas to Remove Ebola Protestors

Police in Liberia's capital, Monrovia, fired tear gas Wednesday during demonstrations¹¹ about efforts to contain the Ebola virus. Protesters were angry about restrictions¹² on movement in their neighborhood. Protesters in the West Point neighborhood shouted and threw stones at security forces. The Liberian government had ordered the restrictions to help stop the spread of Ebola.  The World Health Organization has reported over 90 Ebola deaths around Monrovia.

Pakistani Crisis Continues

Pakistan's parliament met Wednesday as thousands of protesters gathered outside.  They demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Former cricket star Imran Khan and clergyman Tahir-ul-Qadri are leading the protests. They accuse Mr. Sharif of corruption¹³, including cheating in elections.

1 condemns   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的第三人称单数 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• Her widowhood condemns her to a lonely old age. 守寡使她不得不过着孤独的晚年生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The public opinion condemns prostitution. 公众舆论遣责卖淫。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

3 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。

4 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

6 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。

7 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

8 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

9 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》

10 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

11 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

12 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

13 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。