1、雅思阅读材料reading meterialAmanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito acquitted of Meredith Kercher murderFrom the sectionEurope2015.3.28Amanda Knox: Im so grateful to have my life backThe decision is the final ruling in the case relating to the 2007 murder.Ms Kercher, 21, was found dead in a Perugia flat she sh
2、ared with Ms Knox.American Ms Knox and her Italian ex-boyfriend were found guilty in 2009, then freed in 2011 after the convictions were overturned. They were reinstated by another court last year.Full of joyThe couple had always maintained their innocence and the decision by the Court of Cassation
3、puts an end to their long legal battle.The reasoning behind the decision will be made public in 90 days.Ms Knox, 27, said she was full of joy after hearing the verdict.Im still absorbing the present moment, she said, speaking outside her mothers house in Seattle, expressing thanks for the justice Iv
4、e received and for the support Ive had from everyone.Meredith was my friend, she added, she deserved so much in this life.Gavin Lee, BBC Europe Correspondent in RomeIt has been a seven-year trial, and late on Friday night, after nine hours of discussion, five appeal court judges in Romes Supreme Cou
5、rt stepped out to deliver a definitive acquittal of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, over the murder of Meredith Kercher.No reason was given. A brief statement was read by the presiding judge - justification will be delivered, in writing, within 90 days, in accordance with Italian law.Neither def
6、endant was in court to hear the acquittal in person, but there were cheers from both defence teams, who spoke of their surprise - an acquittal being a rarity in Italian Supreme Court hearings.Lawyer Carlo Della Vedova broke the news to Ms Knox by phone, who cried with happiness, saying she now wants
7、 to recover from this nightmare.The Kercher family have not been in court for this hearing, but prosecution lawyer Francesco Maresca spoke of their concern that they wont ever learn the truth about what happened to Meredith eight years ago.Prof Greg Hampikian, a friend of the Knox family who also wo
8、rked on the DNA evidence for Ms Knoxs defence, told BBC Radio 5 live that everybody is very happy to see this finished, so they can get on with their lives.Shes trying to start her life as a young woman, so hopefully this will be a really wonderful change and a new day for them and for Raffaele and
9、his folks, he said. I hope the Kerchers can find peace as well. Its just been an up and down thing for everyone for so long.Meredith Kercher, 21, was found dead in the flat that she shared with Ms KnoxThe lawyer for Ms Kerchers family, Francesco Maresca, has expressed his disappointment with the ver
10、dict.I think that its a defeat for the Italian justice system, he told the Associated Press news agency.Ms Kerchers mother has been quoted by the Press Association as saying that she is surprised and very shocked by the acquittals.Ms Kercher, from Coulsdon in south London, was on a one-year student
11、exchange in Perugia when she was stabbed to death in the flat she shared with Ms Knox.MrSollecito was initially arrested along with Ms Knox days after the killingThe Leeds University students body was found under a duvet in her bedroom, which had been locked from the inside.Days after the killing, M
12、s Knox and her boyfriend at the time, Raffaele Sollecito, 31, were arrested.They were convicted of murder in 2009 by a court in Perugia.But in 2011, a jury cleared both defendants of the charge, after doubts were raised over the handling of DNA evidence.Rudy Guede is serving 16 years for his part in
13、 the murderA retrial was ordered after prosecutors argued that important evidence had been disregarded. In 2014, the guilty verdict was reinstated.Another man, Rudy Hermann Guede, born in Ivory Coast, was also convicted in a separate trial and is serving a 16-year sentence for his role in the murder
14、.David Willis, BBC News, SeattleWhoops of joy erupted from the Knox family home in the sleepy Seattle suburb of Arbor Heights as the verdict was announced.All morning family and friends had been coming and going - members of the Friends of Amanda campaign that has lobbied so tirelessly for her relea
15、se.They and many others in Americas Pacific North-West have long been convinced Amanda Knox is the victim of a major miscarriage of justice.One supporter, former Judge Michael Heavey, likened it, in an interview with the BBC, to a modern day witch hunt.Amanda Knox is now free to travel outside the U
16、S, and, at the age of 27, to plan for her future - a future free of the risk of being extradited to Italy to serve out the remainder of a 28-and-a-half year sentence.Picking up the piecesBinyamin Netanyahus fourth term gets off to a rough startMar 20th 2015BINYAMIN NETANYAHU did not have long to cel
17、ebrate his re-election to a fourth term as Israels prime minister before the reality of his fractured relationship with the Obama administration intruded. Whether, as some are suggesting, this is the worst crisis in the relations between Jerusalem and Washington since the Suez Campaign in 1956, or j
18、ust a passing fracas resulting from personal animosity between two headstrong leaders, could hinge on the outcome of the nuclear talks with Iran in the next ten days.In a terse phone-call on Thursday night, President Barack Obama paused only briefly to congratulate Mr Netanyahu on his victory before
19、 informing him that his administration will “re-assess” its options regarding the Middle East peace process in light of remarks last week made by the prime minister. Mr Netanyahu had seemed to be retreating from a previous commitment to the two-state solution when he abruptly made clear that a Pales
20、tinian state would not be founded during his term. Mr Obama also took him to task for a message he recorded on election day in which Mr Netanyahu exhorted right-wing voters to rush to the polls and defend Israel from “droves of Arabs” voting for left-wing parties.Mr Obamas call was just the latest s
21、alvo in a wave of public statements and off-the-record briefings from administration officials, warning of the “irreversible damage” caused by Mr Netanyahu to the strategic alliance between the two countries. The administration is clearly if quietly paying Mr Netanyahuback for the controversial spee
22、ch he made to Congress two weeks ago, in which the Israeli prime minister lambasted a possible nuclear deal with Iran: a top policy priority forMr Obama.The prime minister had anticipated this and on the day after his election victory was already sitting down for interviews with American media, back
23、pedaling away from his election statements. “I dont want a one-state solution,” he told NBC. “I want a sustainable and peaceful two-state solution, but circumstances have to change for that to happen.” But the explanation was not good enough for an Obama administration which has warned that it may n
24、ow pursue a two-state solution through the United Nations, withholding its customary veto protection of Israel.Mr Netanyahus advisors are convinced the real motivation behind the diplomatic onslaught is the administrations attempt to suppress opposition to the Iranian deal. Dore Gold, the president
25、of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and a member of the prime ministers close circle, said the “timing reflects the administrations primary consideration is the impending nuclear agreement with Iran.” Israeli ministers have insisted in recent weeks that the current rough period is temporary,
26、and that despite the lack of chemistry between the two leaders, the alliance is as strong as ever. Yet many senior officials say otherwise. “Everything from arms procurements to just getting a meeting with your counterpart in DC is now taking twice as long as usual,” said one exasperated Israeli.The
27、 prime minister would prefer to concentrate on lobbying against the deal currently being discussed in Lausanne; as well as on building his new coalition. The coalition Mr Netanyahu envisages, at least in public, is a statement in itself. An overwhelming majority of the 67 Knesset members in the six
28、right-wing and religious parties expected to support the new government, including Mr Netanyahus Likud, are resolutely opposed to a Palestinian state. But that is not the only possible outcome. Mr Netanyahu could signal that he is still open to negotiations by turning to the man who until Tuesday wa
29、s his rival for the premiership, Labour Party leader Yithak Herzog, to form a more centrist coalition. Bibi hasnt closed the door on Herzog, says a government official close to the coalition talks. He has to choose between living under siege from the international community and ditching his right-wi
30、ng parties who will make his life hell at home.In addition to clarifying his position on the Palestinian state, Mr Netanyahu is expected next month to announce that he is releasing the tax revenues Israel charges on behalf of the Palestinian Authority. The revenues were frozen by Israel in January,
31、in retaliation for the Palestinians decision to request membership of the International Criminal Court. By next month, there will be over half a billion dollars of frozen revenue. Israeli officials hope that such a move will help mollify the Americans.Another nod that many in Jerusalem believe Mr Ne
32、tanyahu will make in the presidents direction is the replacement of his ambassador in Washington. Ron Dermer is one of the prime ministers closest advisors, but as the man who engineered Mr Netanyahus invitation to address Congress, he is now seen by many in the White House as little more than Israels ambassador to the GOP. A Ron for Ron move is now widely anticipated, with the ambassador to the United Nations, Ron Prosor, a professional diplomat, swiftly relocating from New
