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Israeli Troops Kill Aid Activists (1st June, 2010)

Israel is facing a storm of international criticism following its killing of aid volunteers in international waters on May 31st. Israeli commandoes boarded a Turkish ship in the Mediterranean that was filled with aid for Palestinians in Gaza. The troops slid down ropes from helicopters and the fighting that followed led to at least 10 fatalities. The ship was carrying 600 activists from all over the world. Those on board say the activists were largely unarmed civilians. They included Northern Ireland’s Mairead Corrigan Maguire, who won the 1976 Nobel Peace Prize, and politicians from many countries. The ship was part of a flotilla trying to break an Israeli blockade to give Gazans food and aid supplies. The confrontation took place 80 miles off the Gaza coast.
Israel’s military was quick to defend its actions. A spokesperson said: “The demonstrators on board attacked the naval personnel with live fire and light weaponry including knives and clubs. Additionally, one of the weapons used was grabbed from an IDF soldier. The demonstrators had clearly prepared their weapons in advance for this specific purpose.” Israel’s trade and industry minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer expressed his regret: "The images are certainly not pleasant. I can only voice regret at all the fatalities," he said. Israeli journalist Amos Harel from the Haaretz newspaper went further. He wrote of the seriousness of Israel’s actions, saying: “The damage that Israel has caused itself internationally can hardly be exaggerated.”

1. TRUE / FALSE: Read the headline. Guess if  a-h  below are true (T) or false (F).
a.
Lots of people around the world are angry with Israel.
T / F

b.
Israeli soldiers boarded the aid ship from their warships.
T / F

c.
There was a Nobel Peace Prize winner among those injured.
T / F

d.
The incident took place 80 miles inside Israel’s waters.
T / F

e.
Israel’s military hasn’t yet commented on its operation.
T / F

f.
Israel said many of the demonstrators already had guns and rifles.
T / F

g.
An Israeli politician expressed his regret for what happened.
T / F

h.
An Israeli journalist believes Israel has caused considerable damage.
T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article.
1.
facing
a.
campaigners

2
boarded
b.
staff

3.
fatalities
c.
overstated

4.
activists
d.
protect

5.
confrontation
e.
deaths

6.
defend
f.
be sorry for

7.
personnel
g.
confronting

8.
specific
h.
encounter

9.
regret
i.
got on

10.
exaggerated
j.
precise

3. PHRASE MATCH:  (Sometimes more than one choice is possible.)
1.
facing a storm of
a.
in advance

2
in international
b.
an Israeli blockade

3.
troops slid down
c.
of Israel’s actions

4.
the activists were
d.
ropes from helicopters

5.
a flotilla trying to break
e.
waters

6.
Israel’s military was quick
f.
caused itself

7.
prepared their weapons
g.
at all the fatalities

8.
I can only voice regret
h.
international criticism

9.
He wrote of the seriousness
i.
to defend its actions

10.
The damage that Israel has
j.
unarmed civilians


40-A-Day Smoking Baby Shocks Indonesia (29th May, 2010)
Images of a two-year-old toddler smoking cigarettes have shocked people in Indonesia. The little boy, Ardi Rizal from Sumatra, is addicted to nicotine and smokes 40 cigarettes a day. Videos of Ardi casually puffing away on a cigarette emerged this week on YouTube. The footage, now removed, shows him smoking like a true pro. His father, Mohammed Rizal, thinks there’s no problem with his son’s nasty habit. He told reporters that his child looked healthy and that was the only thing that was important. He went on to explain how Ardi took up smoking when he was 18 months old. That was when he gave his son his first cigarette. Now he’s totally hooked; he throws tantrums if his father does not let him smoke.
Ardi’s story is part of a worrying trend in Indonesia. Government statistics reveal 25 per cent of Indonesian kids aged between 3 and 15 have smoked and that over 3 per cent are regular smokers. Indonesia is the world’s third largest smoking nation. Cigarettes are everywhere and smoking is still seen as a socially acceptable practice. Health Minister Endang Sedyaningsih said preventing youngsters from smoking would be very difficult because people believe smoking