BBC News with Sue Montgomery

The Libyan Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril has announced that the country's former leader Muammar Gaddafi is dead.

"We have been waiting, as Libyans, for this historic moment. Gaddafi has been killed. As to how and by whom he was killed, our experts are now investigating. And as soon as we have the results, we will announce them to everyone."

National Transitional Council fighters in Sirte have been celebrating after the capture of the city and the death of Colonel Gaddafi. A fighter loyal to Libya's interim authorities told the BBC he found the former Libyan leader hiding in a drainage culvert; he begged him not to shoot. Gabriel Gatehouse has been to the spot.

Well, this is the place where they captured Colonel Gaddafi. He was hiding in that irrigation channel there that is now becoming an instant photo opportunity for all these fighters who have been battling for so long to capture the former Libyan leader. They say they discovered him here just before 12 o'clock this afternoon. They pulled him out of the hole. And one fighter told me that Muammar Gaddafi said to him "What did I do to you?" They've been parading his golden gun through the outskirts of Sirte. The people who are said to have been involved in his actual capture have become instant heroes. Arguments are breaking out over who actually did the work, who pulled him out of the hole.

A senior official told the BBC fighting throughout Libya was over. The Libyan transitional authorities say Colonel Gaddafi's son Mutassim has been killed and his other son Saif al-Islam arrested. The Libyan information minister said Mutassim Gaddafi, who was the former national security adviser, was killed after he was found hiding with his father.

President Obama has said that the death of Colonel Gaddafi marks the end of a long and painful chapter for the people of Libya. The president said four decades of what he called the "iron fist" of the Gaddafi regime had come to an end and the Libyan people now had a great responsibility to build a democratic country. For his part, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for national reconciliation.

"Let us recognise, immediately, that this is only the end of the beginning. The road ahead for Libya and its people will be difficult and full of challenges. Now it's the time for all Libyans to come together. Libyans can only realise the promise of the future through national unity and reconciliation."

BBC News

The Greek parliament has given its final approval to an austerity bill, which will cut public sector wages and pensions, raise taxes and allow the government to sack tens of thousands of public workers. The vote came after a two-day strike against the measures. One man died after he was injured in clashes outside the parliament. The latest cuts are a key requirement for Greece to receive another bailout from the European Union.

Turkey has launched a major ground operation against suspected Kurdish militants in northern Iraq. The Turkish military says about 10,000 soldiers are taking part in the offensive that's supported by warplanes attacking several areas. The operation comes two days after Kurdish militants killed 24 Turkish soldiers.

The Basque separatist organisation Eta, which aims to gain independence for the Basque region from Spain, has announced what it calls a "definitive cessation of armed activity". The announcement comes days after international negotiators called on both Basque separatists and the Spanish government to hold talks about their long-running conflict. James Robbins reports.

Eta's leaders are still fugitives. Their new video message could mark an end to four decades of killings. It is time, the Eta spokesman says, to look to the future with hope; it is also time to act with responsibility and courage. He goes on, Eta has decided on a definitive cessation of its armed activity. And it's those words - definitive cessation of armed activity - which are crucial. International mediators urged their inclusion to signal something much more than a ceasefire, which Eta has promised and broken in the past.

The President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, has said he's free from cancer after returning home from Cuba, where he had a checkup. Mr Chavez said the four rounds of chemotherapy he's had have been successful. Mr Chavez has so far not given any details of his cancer.

BBC News

利比亚总理马哈茂德·贾布里勒宣布前国家领导人穆阿迈尔·卡扎菲死亡。

“作为利比亚人，我们一直在等待这个历史性的时刻，卡扎菲已经被杀。至于为何被杀，是谁杀的，我们的专家正在调查中。一旦有了结果，我们会向大家宣布。”  

苏尔特的全国委员会战士庆祝攻下次城和卡扎菲上校的死亡，一名忠于利比亚过渡当局的战士告诉BBC，他在一处下水道涵洞发现了这位利比亚前领导人，他乞求不要开枪。Gabriel Gatehouse已奔赴此地。

看，这就是他们抓获卡扎菲上校的地方，他藏身的地方，原来是一个灌溉渠，现在成了这些战士给这位前领导人即时拍照的地方，为了抓获他已战斗很久。他们说，今天下午12点之前他们在这里发现了卡扎菲，他们把他从洞中拖出。一名战士告诉我，穆阿迈尔·卡扎菲问他“我对你做过什么吗？”他们拿着卡扎菲的金枪在苏尔特郊外炫耀。那名据说与此擒获直接有关的人迅速成为了英雄。他们争论着是谁把卡扎菲从洞中拖出的。  

一名高级官员告诉BBC，利比亚战争已经结束。卡扎菲上校的儿子穆塔西姆已被杀，他的另一个儿子赛义夫·伊斯兰被捕。利比亚情报部长说，前国家安全顾问穆塔西姆·卡扎菲被发现和父亲在一起，然后被杀。

奥巴马总统说，卡扎菲上校之死标志着利比亚人民漫长又痛苦的时代的终结。总统说，卡扎菲四十年的“铁拳”政权已经结束，利比亚人民现在负有建设民主国家的重大责任，联合国秘书长潘基文呼吁进行国家和解。

“让我们将这看做是开端的完结，摆在利比亚及其人民前面的路还很艰巨，充满了挑战。现在是所有利比亚人团结的时候了，利比亚人民只有通过国民团结和协调，才能实现对未来的承诺。”

希腊议会最终通过紧缩法案，包括削减公共部门工资和养老金，提高税收，允许政府解雇数万名公共部门员工。投票之前，就这些政策引发了为期两天的抗议。一名男子在议会外的冲突中受伤后死亡。最新的削减政策对希腊来说，是接受欧盟救市资金的关键要求。

在伊拉克北部，土耳其对嫌疑库尔德武装分子发起重要的地面进攻，土耳其军方说，约有一万名士兵参加了这次由战机保护的进攻，战机袭击了几个地区。这次作战发起的两天前，库尔德武装分子杀死了24名土耳其士兵。

意在将巴斯克地区从西班牙独立出去的巴斯克分裂主义者运动埃塔组织，宣布“完全结束武装活动”。宣布做出的几天前，国际协调者呼吁巴斯克分裂主义者和西班牙政府就长期冲突进行对话。James Robbins报道。  

埃塔的领导人尚在逃亡中，他们的新视频信息标志着四十年杀戮的结束。埃塔发言人说，是充满希望地期待未来的时候了，是时候负责勇敢地行动了。他说，埃塔决定完全结束武装活动。这几个词：完全结束武装活动，至关重要。国际协调者曾敦促他们做出比停火更进一步的行动，埃塔对此表示答应，但后来违约了。

委内瑞拉总统雨果.查韦斯说，从古巴做身体检查回来后，癌症已经痊愈。查韦斯说，这四轮化疗非常成功，目前他还没透露癌症的有关细节
 

重点讲解

1. culvert     n. 涵洞桥

After days of hard work, the culvert was at last completed.
经过几天的苦战,总算把涵洞修好了。

2. irrigation  n.灌溉

Irrigation is needed to make crops grow in dry areas. 
要使庄稼在干旱地区生长就需灌溉。 

3. photo opportunity  拍照机会，拍照时间 

4. iron fist  n. 铁拳，强硬手段

Our old former teacher used to rule the class with an iron fist.
我们过去的教师一向对课堂控制得很严。

5. reconciliation  n.和解，调和

I told her that there could never be a reconciliation between us. 
我告诉她我们之间决不可能和解。 

6. bailout  n. 紧急(财政)援助

A $30 billion bailout by the IMF helped Brazil avert the disaster.
国际货币基金提供三百亿紧急援助帮助巴西避免了这场灾难。 

7. cessation  n.中止，(短暂的)停止

a momentary cessation of breathing 
短暂性的停止呼吸