BBC News. I'm Marian Marshall.
For the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union 16 years ago, Russia has dispatched 11 warships including its flag-ship aircraft carrier to the Mediterranean as part of a drive to boost its military presence around the world. There’ll also be naval sorties into the North Atlantic. This follows a decision by President Vladimir Putin in August to resume long-range patrols by Russian bomber aircraft. Our world affairs correspondent Nick Childs says the move is clearly meant to drive home a message that Russia is back as a major international player.
"It's not clear just how extensive this, this all is, in terms of these new patrols. But / I think this is the navy getting in on the act again as part of Russia flexing its muscles, and more generally an assertive foreign policy. So it comes along with the bomber patrols. And we shall have to see just how long-lasting these patrols are going to be. "
Nine people have been killed in a shooting at a shopping mall in the American state of Nebraska. Police say a gunman entered the mall and shot eight people before turning the gun on himself. Five others have been injured, some seriously. The shooting took place in the town of Omaha which President Bush had visited earlier in the day for a fund-raising event. This woman was in the mall and saw the gunman. "I heard a roar and I looked back until I saw the guy in the children's department. Big tall guy, real tall. And he just stood there with his arms and held his hands straight up in the air shooting. And then I turned and ran. "
The American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice who has been meeting East African leaders in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa has urged them to do more to tackle some of the continent's most intractable conflicts. Leaders from the Democratic Republic of Congo and its eastern neighbors said they would do more to stop cross-border rebel activity.
The American Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said the goal of a stable, democratic Iraq is within reach. He was speaking after talks with Iraqi leaders on an unannounced visit to the country. Mr. Gates said it was important to build on the success of recent months which he said had seen a dramatic change in the security situation across Iraq. "There has been a substantial increase in the number of refugees returning home. International investment in Iraq is on the rise. And more than 70,000 Iraqis have taken it upon themselves to defend their neighborhoods. In many parts of the nation, these positive developments have led to a growing sense of normalcy and hope. "
The Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has said he will try again to reform the country's constitution despite a defeat in a referendum at the weekend. In a news conference, Mr. Chavez described his loss as a worthless victory for the opposition. The president rejected reports that he had been pressured by the armed forces to accept defeat before all the votes were counted. He said a narrow victory in his favor would have left doubts about the outcome.
World News from the BBC.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Kim-Moon says he's sending high-level envoys to press Sudan to accept non-African troops in the joint UN-African Union peace keeping force for the western region of Darfur. Mr. Ban said he was frustrated by what he called "the foot-dragging" of the Sudanese government on a final agreement so that the force could be deployed in Darfur from January. "I'm deeply concerned even disappointed by the lack of progress in this deployment process of hybrid operation."
The International Criminal Court Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has urged the United Nations to force Sudan to arrest two men accused of war crimes in Darfur. Mr. Ocampo issued arrest warrants for the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs Ahmad Harun and a leader of the pro-government Janjaweed militia. He gave details of what he called "a calculated, organized campaign" by Sudanese officials to attack displaced people in the refugee camps.
The French President Nicolas Sarkozy has made a direct appeal to the head of the Colombian left-wing rebel group, the FARC, to release a Franco-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt who has been held for the group for almost six years. In television and radio messages, President Sarkozy urged the FARC not to risk Mr. Betancourt dying in captivity. Last week, a video emerged showing Mr. Betancourt alive but looking thin and haggard.
The international research team has concluded that river dolphins in the Amazon carry objects they find in the water to attract mates. Scientists spent three years ing the behavior of male dolphins and found those who carry items such as mud, river weed or sticks in their mouths are likely to be far more prolific fathers than those that don't. The researchers say this indicates the behavior is some form of sexual display. The findings challenge the assumption that using props to attract a mate is unique to humans.
BBC News.
Glossary
intractable adj.
1. 难驾御[管理、指挥]的
an intractable child; 难管教的孩子
2. 倔强的，难处理的，难加工的
intractable materials; 不易加工的材料
an intractable metal; 难加工的金属
an intractable temper; 倔强的性情
3. 难治疗的；难对付的
intractable disease; 难治的疾病
intractable pain; 难消除的疼痛
prolific adj.
1. 结籽的；产子的；有生产力的；富于创造力的；大量生产的（of）
a family prolific of children; 多子女的家庭
a prolific writer; 多产作家
a prolific artist; 多产艺术家
2. 肥沃的；丰富的；富于……的（in）
prolific in the production of fruit; 盛产水果的
props n
(infml) =property ，指财产。