VOA慢速英语2016 雅加达市中心发生爆炸和枪击事件

AS IT IS 2016-01-15 Series of Explosions Spread Terror in Jakarta 雅加达市中心发生爆炸和枪击事件

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for a bomb and gun attack Thursday in Indonesia’s capital.

The attack left at least seven people dead, including a Canadian and an Indonesian. Twenty other people were wounded. Officials said all five attackers were killed.

A news agency linked to Islamic State says the attacks took place in an upscale neighborhood in central Jakarta.

Earlier, an Indonesian national police spokesman said a group allied¹ with the Islamic State was probably responsible for the attacks. He said the attackers likely wanted to copy the terror attacks in Paris two months ago.

The Jakarta police chief, Tito Karnavian, named an Indonesian in Syria as being responsible. “All leaders of Islamic State in Southeast Asia are competing to be the regional chief. That’s why (Indonesian fighter) Bahrun Naim plotted this attack,” he said.

The violence began with a series of explosions on Thursday morning. Six blasts were reported near a shopping center, hotels and embassies.

Gun battles between militants² and police took place throughout the day. By late afternoon, officials said the attack had ended.

"This is a very popular shopping area with restaurants and office buildings," said Frans Demon³, a VOA Indonesian Service reporter in Jakarta.

He also said the bombs exploded not far from a United Nations office, the presidential palace and the U.S. Embassy.

The embassy will remain closed on Friday, as a precaution.

The president of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, called the attacks “acts of terror.” He told the country not be afraid and asked for calm.

In November, Indonesian officials received a threat from Islamic State about a bomb attack in Jakarta. Before Thursday’s attacks, the last attack against foreigners in Jakarta was a hotel bombing in 2009.

Words in This Story

upscale – adj. relating to something that is costly⁴ or pricey

regional – adj. affecting, of or serving a given area

blasts – n. explosions

shopping – adj. of or relating to a place where goods are bought and sold

precaution - n. a safety measure

1 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

2 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。

3 demon   

n.魔鬼，恶魔

参考例句：

• The demon of greed ruined the miser's happiness.贪得无厌的恶习毁掉了那个守财奴的幸福。
• He has been possessed by the demon of disease for years.他多年来病魔缠身。

4 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。