Show notes
1. Israel has told tens of thousands more residents of Rafah in southern Gaza to evacuate, as its troops prepare to step up operations there, in defiance of warnings that an invasion would paralyse aid operations and cause unacceptable civilian casualties. President Joe Biden has said America will not provide offensive weapons to Israel for Rafah. On Friday, a report from America’s State Department said it had found “reasonable” evidence that Israel’s use of American-supplied weapons during the war had violated international humanitarian law.
以色列已告知加沙南部拉法的數萬居民撤離，因為它的軍隊準備加強那裡的行動，不顧入侵將癱瘓援助行動並造成不可接受的平民傷亡的警告。美國總統喬·拜登表示，美國不會向以色列提供拉法的攻擊性武器。上週五，美國國務院的一份報告表示，發現以色列在戰爭期間使用美國提供的武器違反了國際人道法，有「合理」證據支持。
-> If you were Joe Biden, what would you do about Israel?
2. In a new offensive in the Kharkiv **region **of north-east Ukraine that began on Friday, Russian forces claimed to have taken control of five villages. Ukraine said fighting was continuing in all of them and that more than 1,700 people had been forced to flee. Russia’s assault opens a new front, with troops advancing towards the city of Kharkiv from the Russian border to its north.
在上週五開始的烏克蘭東北部哈爾科夫地區的新進攻中，俄羅斯軍隊聲稱已經控制了五個村莊。烏克蘭表示，所有村莊都在進行戰鬥，超過1,700人被迫逃離。俄羅斯的攻擊開啟了一個新的戰線，從俄羅斯北部邊界向哈爾科夫市推進。
-> In your opinion, when will people stop caring about the war in Ukraine?
3. Donald Tusk pledged to strengthen security at Poland’s border with Belarus. On his first visit to the frontier since his re-election in December, the Polish prime minister accused Belarus of waging a “hybrid war” through illegal migration—bringing in would-be migrants and urging them to cross into Poland, thereby entering the EU. “There are no limits on resources when it comes to Poland´s security,” he said.
唐納德·圖斯克承諾加強波蘭與白俄羅斯邊境的安全。在去年十二月重新當選後的首次訪問邊境，波蘭總理指責白俄羅斯通過非法移民發動「混合戰爭」——引導潛在移民入境並敦促他們越境到波蘭，從而進入歐盟。「在波蘭的安全問題上，資源是無限的，」他說。
-> For the humanitarian reason, should all the countries accept illegal immigrants? Why or why not?
4. Flash floods in the north of Afghanistan have killed more than 300 people, according to the UN’s World Food Programme, and left thousands homeless. Heavy rains on Friday sent rivers of mud coursing through villages and destroyed fields. Afghanistan, one of the world’s poorest countries, has endured a string of natural disasters this year, including other flooding and earthquakes.
根據聯合國世界糧食計劃署的消息，阿富汗北部的山洪暴發已造成逾300人死亡，成千上萬人無家可歸。上週五的大雨導致泥濘的河水衝入村莊，摧毀了田地。作為全球最貧困的國家之一，阿富汗今年遭受了一系列自然災害，包括其他洪水和地震。
5. The number of deaths linked to flooding in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul rose to 136. Another 125 people remain** accounted for**. More than 300,000 people have *been forced to* leave their homes. During recent storms, the third bout since September, the region experienced between one-third and one-half of the average expected rainfall in just ten days.
與巴西南部州份Rio Grande do Sul的洪水有關的死亡人數上升到136人，另外還有125人失蹤。超過30萬人被迫離開家園。在最近的風暴中，這個地區在短短十天內經歷了自九月以來的第三波暴雨，降雨量達到平均預期的三分之一到一半。
-> In your opinion, should rich countries take responsibilities for the poor countries’ natural disasters too? Why or why not? (R4 and R5 are combined)
6. Consumer prices in China increased by only 0.3% in April compared with last year, according to statistics released on Saturday. Producer prices, measured at the factory gate, fell year-on-year for the 19th month in a row. Earlier, China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange reported that foreign direct investment was down by 56% in the first quarter compared with the same period last year.
根據週六公布的統計數據，中國四月份的消費者物價同比僅上漲0.3%。而以工廠價格計算的生產者價格則連續第19個月同比下降。此前，中國國家外匯管理局報告稱，與去年同期相比，第一季度外商直接投資下降了56%。
-> In your opinion, if you were an international businessperson, would you like to invest in China NOW? Why or why not?
7. Sky-watchers in northern and southern parts of the planet were wowed by the auroras created by a solar storm—the first “extreme” geomagnetic storm since 2003, as judged by America’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Solar flares (sudden spikes in the sun’s brightness) and their associated coronal mass ejections (burps of superheated plasma that the sun releases into space) may help light up the sky, but they can also **interfere with **satellites’ electronics and disrupt power grids.
北半球和南半球的天文觀察者被太陽風暴引發的極光所震撼——這是自2003年以來美國國家海洋和大氣管理局判定的第一次「極端」地磁暴。太陽耀斑（太陽亮度的突然增加）及其伴隨的日冕物質抛射（太陽向外釋放的超熱等離子體）可能會照亮天空，但它們也可能干擾衛星的電子設備並破壞電力網絡。
-> In your opinion, will solar activity become a main cause for our next mass extinction on Earth? Why or why not?
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