BBC News with Nick Kelly

The United Nations refugee agency says 14,000 Ivorians have fled to neighbouring Liberia to escape the violence that followed last month's disputed presidential election in Ivory Coast. Peter Miles has the details.

A spokes[wo]man for the UNHCR told the BBC it had so farcounted 14,000 refugees from Ivory Coast in Liberia. Most of them came from villages in the west of the country, and the vast majority were supporter[s] of Alassane Ouattara, the presidentialcontenderbacked by the international community. The spokeswoman said the refugees had been walking for days to escape a situation they feared could explode into violence and the flow was continuing. Meanwhile, the incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo is clinging on in defiance of growing international calls for him to hand over power.

President Obama has led international condemnation of a suicide bombing in Pakistan which killed at least 40 people and injured another 60. The bomber, reported to be a woman, attacked a large gathering of displaced people in the town of Khar, in Bajaur district in the northwestern tribal region. The victims, who mostly belong to a tribe opposed to the Taliban, had been waiting for United Nations foodrations. Mr Obama said the United States would strongly support Pakistan's efforts to ensure peace, security and justice for its people. Pakistani helicopter gunships backed by artillery later killed 40 suspected insurgents in the neighbouring region of Mohmand.

The second rise in interest rates in China in just over two months is coming into effect as the government steps up its fight against inflation. Here's Vivien Marsh of our Asia Pacific desk.

A brief statement on the website of the People's Bank of China said the one-year lending and deposit rates would go up by a quarter of a percentage point. Inflation is at its highest level in more than two years, and taming it is at the top of Beijing's policy agenda. Over the past two years, loans have been easy to come by as China rebounded quickly from the global economic crisis. But the new tightening indicates the sensitivity of inflation in a society in which poor families spend up to half their incomes on food.

Twelve Somalis have been arrested in Rotterdam in the Netherlands on suspicion of involvement in terrorist activities. Geraldine Coughlin reports from The Hague.

Prosecutors said in a statement that the tip-off from the Dutch security service reports that a number of Somalis were planning to carry out a terrorist attack in the Netherlandsrelativelysoon. A telephone shop and four houses in Rotterdam were searched by around 20 armed police officers, as well as two motel rooms in a village in the south of the country, but no weapons or explosives were found.

There's been a strong earthquake measuring 7.6 near to the western Pacific nation of Vanuatu. There are no reports of damage or injuries so far. The quake triggered a tsunami warning in the region. It was later cancelled.

BBC News

The Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan says his government will do all it can to bring to justice the perpetrators of Friday's bomb blasts in the city of Jos. The authorities say 32 people were killed and more than 70 were injured in a series of explosions.

The spiritual head of the Anglican Church, the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, has accused the wealthy of failing to share the pain caused by the financial crisis and spending cuts. Delivering his Christmas Day sermon, Dr Williams said that with hardship ahead for so many, confidence was low, and it would grow only if there were more signs of solidarity. In her traditional Christmas speech, Queen Elizabeth has focused on sport as a unifying force. Delivering her speech at Hampton Court Palace on the Thames, she said sport and games were a powerful way of engendering team spirit, building communities and bringing people from different backgrounds together.

President Obama has urged Americans to support US troops and their families during the Christmas holiday period. In his weekly address, Mr Obama was joined by his wife Michelle, who said Americans didn't need to be experts on military life to make a contribution. Rajini Vaidyanathan reports from Washington.

The Christmas message comes at the end of a busy week for the president, which saw him score key legislative victories - the Senate approved a nuclear arms treaty with Russia and the president won his battle to repeal the military's ban on openly gay and bisexual service members. But Mr Obama faces a challenging year ahead with his party losing control of the House of Representatives and the economy struggling to get back on track.

And Sri Lanka has released 100 former Tamil Tiger rebels to mark Christmas Day. It's the latest group to be freed from the camps where they'd been held since the Tamil Tigers were defeated by government forces last year. The government says 5,000 former rebels are still being held. But international human rights groups and the media haven't been given access.

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1.count vt.点…的数目, 计算

例句：Let's count the people who are present.

咱们把到的人数点一下。

2.contender n.(冠军)争夺者;竞争者

例句：a strong contender for the gold medal

金牌的强有力争夺者

3.ration n.定量; 配给量

例句：The country cut the bread ration last year.

那个国家去年削减面包配给量。

4.relatively adv.相对地,比较而言;相当

例句：a piece that is relatively easy to play

比较容易演奏的乐曲

A relatively firm material can be anticipated.

可以提前准备一种较为坚实的材料。

5.perpetrator n.犯罪者;行凶者

6.engender vt.产生(某形势或状况), 造成, 引起

例句：The meeting engendered several quarrels.

这次会议发生了几次争吵。

7.legislative adj.立法的；制定法律的

例句：Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.

国会是美国政府的立法部门。

8.background n.背景情况,出身背景；学历；经历

例句：The riots took place against a background of widespread unemployment.

暴乱是在普遍失业的情况下发生的。

9.trigger vt.引发, 引起(连锁反应)

例句：The incident triggered an armed clash.

这起事件触发了一场武装冲突。

1.Meanwhile, the incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo is clinging on in defiance of growing international calls for him to hand over power.

cling on坚持

例句：Throughout this 15-year ordeal, Japan has struggled with the difficult issue of what to jettison and what to cling on to.

在这15年的痛苦经历中，经济问题中应该扬弃一些什么，成为困扰日本的难题。

in defiance of不管…; 无视…

例句：She acted in defiance of my orders.

她无视我的命令行动了。

He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.

他蔑视警告爬上了那架梯子。

2.The second rise in interest rates in China in just over two months is coming into effect as the government steps up its fight against inflation.

come into effect(文件、合同）生效

例句：The contract will come into effect upon signature.

此合同将在签字后生效。

3.Over the past two years, loans have been easy to come by as China rebounded quickly from the global economic crisis.

come by得到, 获得

例句：He came by the data from various sources.

这些资料他是从不同地方找到的。

Money that is easily come by is often easily spent.

钱来得容易往往也花得容易。

4.Delivering his Christmas Day sermon, Dr Williams said that with hardship ahead for so many, confidence was low, and it would grow only if there were more signs of solidarity.

only if表示只有；if only则表示如果……就好了。If only也可用于陈述语气。

I wake up only if the alarm clock rings. 只有闹钟响了，我才会醒。

If only the alarm clock had rung.当时闹钟响了，就好了。

If only he comes early.但愿他早点回来。