2015年12月24日 星期四

week6 - Paris terror attack

Paris Attacks: 127 Dead After 'Terrorists' Using Suicide Vests Stage Multiple Attacks and Take Hostages

French President Francois Hollande said at least 127 were killed on Friday in a series of six coordinated attacks in Paris that he described as an "act of war" -- blaming ISIS for the violence that included shootings, explosions and a hostage situation at a concert hall.
"And when faced with war, the country must take appropriate decisions," Hollande said on Saturday. "An act committed by a terrorist army, DAESH [ISIS], against what we are, a free country that speaks together with the planet."
Three days of national mourning in France has been declared, according to the French president.
Eight attackers are dead, and seven died detonating suicide vests, according to Agence France-Presse, citing police. A Syrian passport was found on the body of an attacker near one of the attack sites, the Stade de France stadium, police told ABC News.
French police said they believed all of the attackers involved in the shootings and bombings were dead, but authorities were searching for accomplices.
Three hundred people were hospitalized, according to Paris medical authorities, including 80 people in life-threatening condition and 177 in somewhat critical condition. Forty three witnesses were also admitted, medical authorities said, adding that 53 people have since been discharged.
Americans were among those injured, according to the State Department.
"The U.S. government is working closely with French authorities to identify American victims," said Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner. "We are aware there are Americans among the injured, and are offering them the full range of consular assistance."
According to Agence France-Presse, citing a police source, three of the attackers at the concert hall died when they detonated their suicide belts as police closed in. A fourth was shot dead by police. AFP said that three more attackers were dead outside the Stade de France soccer stadium and one on a street in eastern Paris.
In the wake of the attacks, Hollande said he was imposing border checks and declaring a state of emergency. Anyone deemed dangerous could be placed under house arrest. Hollande called the attacks "unprecedented" and President Obama called them an attack "on all of humanity."
The two leaders shared a phone call on Friday evening where Obama expressed his condolences. "The President reiterated the United States' steadfast, unwavering support for the people of France, our oldest ally and friend, and reaffirmed the offer of any necessary support to the French investigation," the White House said.
In a tweet, the Elysee Palace said: "terrorists capable of such atrocities should know that they will face a determined and united France."
what :a terror attack happen in Paris
who : attacker ,police ,syrian
where : Paris ,France
when : Nov 14, 2015,
why : not given
how : the attackers attack many palces in Paris with guns and finally some of them suicide to kill more people

*keyword:
 coordinated(adj.)協同
hospitalize(v.)就醫
consular(adj.)領事的
imposing(adj.)莊嚴的;給人深刻印象的
deem(v.)認為;持某種看法
unprecedented(adj.)空前的
condolence(n.)哀悼
reiterate(v.)反覆地說;重申
unwavering(adj.)不動搖的;堅定的
reaffirm(v.)重申                               
atrocity(n.)兇惡;殘暴;暴行

2015年12月17日 星期四

week 5 - Bangkok bomb explosion

Death toll rises in Bangkok bomb blast

Duncan Forgan and John Bacon, USA TODAY5:43 p.m. EDT August 17, 2015

BANGKOK — A deadly bomb blast Monday rocked a downtown shopping and tourism hub here during the evening rush hour, killing at least 18 people and injuring scores more, authorities said.
“It sounded like thunder,” said Alexander Hotz, an American filmmaker who works in the area. “We were sitting in the office, and at first we thought it was just an amazingly loud rainstorm coming through. Then one of our Thai interns came back upstairs and told us that things were going crazy.”
A BBC correspondent said there were "body parts scattered everywhere" and a crater, indicating a bombing. People near the Erawan Shrine, a Hindu religious site where the explosion took place, were hit by the “full force of the blast,” the BBC reported. Burned motorbikes could be seen in the road.
Police initially said they found a suspicious object near the blast site and were concerned about a second explosion. Later, national police chief Somyot Poompummuang told the Associated Press the object had been determined to be harmless.
At least 18 people were confirmed dead and 117 injured, AP said, citing emergency officials. The Bangkok Post, citing the Royal Thai Police, put the death toll at 19.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the blast.
The Post said an improvised explosive device placed inside the shrine complex detonated at 6.55 p.m. local time. The newspaper said the scale of the explosion set motorbikes and taxis ablaze near the Rajprasong intersection, cite of political protests in recent years.
Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwan condemned the bombing and expressed condolences to the families of the dead and injured. He told the Post it was too soon to say if the attacks were politically motivated.
"But it was clear that the perpetrators intended to destroy the economy and tourism, because it occurred in the heart of (Bangkok's) business district," Prawit said.
The White House also condemned the attack and said U.S. officials would remain in close contact with Thai authorities investigating the blast. The statement, from National Security Council spokesman Ned Price, extended "our deepest condolences to all those affected by the explosion."
While such attacks are rare here, there have been smaller incidents in recent months. In February, a small, homemade pipe bomb exploded near a Bangkok shopping mall. In March, grenades were tossed in front of the Central Criminal Court in Bangkok, and in April seven people were injured in parking lot blast in the tourist island of Koh Samui.
who : Thailand officials
what : a serious explosion occurred to Bangkok
when : August 17, 2015
where : Bangkok , Thailand
why : a man put a bomb in a downtown shopping and tourism hub
how : the bomb exploded caused at least 18 people dead and a lot of people injuiring
* keyword:
Scatter(v.)分散;消散
Crater(n.)彈坑;火山口
Improvised(n.)自製炸彈
Detonate(v.)指示;表示
Condolences(n.)哀悼
Perpetrator(n.)犯罪者
Grenade(n.)手榴彈

2015年12月3日 星期四

week4 - Yangtze river,shipwreck

Hundreds Missing After Chinese Cruise Ship Sinks on Yangtze



BEIJING — Most of the 458 people aboard a chartered cruise ship in China were still missing on Tuesday morning, more than a dozen hours after the vessel sank during a torrential rainstorm along the central Yangtze River, according to a report by Xinhua, the state news agency.
Just 13 people had been rescued, local news media reported, making this perhaps the worst passenger maritime disaster in East Asia since the sinking of the South Korean ferry Sewol last year.
The water where the boat sank is about 50 feet deep. Rescuers could hear the sounds of people trapped inside, according to a Twitter post by China Central Television, the main state network. The ship, whose name translates as Oriental Star, was crossing Hubei Province in the middle of the country when it sank at 9:28 p.m. on Monday, Xinhua reported, citing the Yangtze River Navigation Administration. Rescue work was hampered by strong winds and heavy rain.
Most of the passengers were 50 to 80 years old and had been traveling on a group tour, according to Hubei Daily. The newspaper reported that one body, which appeared to be that of a tour guide, had been discovered. Hundreds of soldiers and police and paramilitary officers were on the scene. More than 100 boats and divers were also there, the newspaper reported. The ship had capsized, with part of the hull above the surface of the water.
The captain and an engineer were detained by the police, Xinhua reported on one of its social media accounts, citing the river administration authorities. The report did not say why they were being held, or whether that was a routine procedure in the investigation.
According to Xinhua, the authorities learned of the disaster after several survivors swam to shore and alerted them. At least eight people were reported to have been hospitalized.
The Chinese Navy was sending a contingent of more than 140 divers to the site of the capsized ship, the Twitter account of the state-run People’s Daily reported. People’s Daily also reported that a 65-year-old woman had been rescued early Tuesday afternoon, more than 15 hours after the ferry sank. It was not clear where she had been found. People’s Daily originally reported that the woman was 85 years old.
The ship had been hired by the Shanghai Xiehe Tourism Agency to carry hundreds of retirees on a multiday trip along a long, scenic stretch of the Yangtze. A handwritten sign posted on the company’s door on Tuesday said the head of the company had gone to the scene. A mobile number scrawled on the sheet was busy throughout Tuesday morning.
Some relatives of the passengers were furious that they learned about the accident through news reports and not directly from the travel agency, according to a report by The Paper, an investigative news organization.
The people on board included five employees from one or more travel agencies and 47 crew members.
The vessel sank in Jianli County in Hubei Province. It was sailing between two of China’s largest cities, from Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu Province, on the east coast, to Chongqing, an  interior metropolis. That journey takes several days.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/02/world/asia/ship-reported-sunk-in-chinas-yangtze.html?_r=0
who : visitors, ship crews, rescuers
where : Oriental Star in the central Yangtze Rive

when : JUNE 1, 2015
why : a tornado crosses the river
how : not given
what : a cruise ship sink


*keywords
1. torrential
(adi.)洶湧的;奔流的
2. paramilitary
(adj.)輔助正規軍的
3. hospitalize (v.)住院
4. contingent
(n.)分隊;偶然的事情
5. interior
(adj.)內部的
6. metropoli
s(n.)大都市;重要中心