今年早些时候，日本捕鲸船队到达南极，他们被海洋守护者协会的船只驱逐。下次他们或许会派一支更强大的船队，或者撤出。三月份的地震海啸以及紧跟着的福岛核灾难使日本国家预算减少，许多观察家认为船队会撤回，政府顾问对此进行了公开讨论。海洋守护者协会已宣誓也开赴南极，这是25年来日本几乎终止南极捕鲸计划的一次。

Shares in the electronics giant Apple fell by almost 5% within minutes of the eagerly anticipated launch of the company's latest smartphone. Analysts say investors and Apple fans had expected the new iPhone 4S to be a more radical improvement over its predecessor. The launch in California was the first product presentation led by Apple's new chief operating officer Tim Cook, who took over from the firm's ailing co-founder Steve Jobs, who's credited with driving much of Apple's innovation.

电子产业巨头苹果刚宣布人们期待已久的最新智能手机，数分钟内该公司的股票就下跌近5%。分析者认为，投资者和果粉们期待新款iphone4s会比之前的产品更先进。加州的发布会是苹果新任执行官库克领导下的首次产品发布，库克已接替生病的创立者史蒂夫乔布斯，苹果的大部分创新都归功于他。

Forces of the transitional government in Libya have used tanks to pound the centre of the city of Sirte, the hometown of the fugitive Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. His supporters have been putting up stiff resistance for weeks. Residents have continued to flee the city, and humanitarian agencies say a full-scale assault would put many lives at risk.