五名索马里海盗在美国被判终身监禁

时间：2011-03-15 06:04:25

（单词翻译:单击）

Five Somali men convicted of attacking a US Navy ship they mistook for a merchant vessel¹ have been sentenced to life in prison.

五名索马里海盗因袭击一艘美国军舰被判处终生监禁，据悉该团伙将军舰误认为商船。

The men were found guilty in November of trying to hijack² the USS Nicholas, a vessel on an anti-piracy³ mission.

Defence lawyers claimed the men had been abducted⁴（绑架） by pirates and forced to fire their weapons in the April attack.

The men were the first convicted of piracy by a US jury since 1820, prosecutors⁵ said.

'Clear message'

The piracy conviction carried a mandatory⁶（强制的） life sentence; the men were sentenced to an additional 80 years for firearms charges in connection with the hijack attempt.

The men said they would appeal against（提出上诉） the conviction and the sentence.

"Today's sentences should send a clear message to those who attempt to engage in piracy: Armed attacks on US-flagged vessels⁷ carry severe consequences in US courts," said US Attorney Neil MacBride.

He told reporters the sentence handed down by Judge Mark Davis was the longest ever in a piracy conviction, because the pirate convicted in 1820 was hanged.

The trial took place in Norfolk in the US state of Virginia, one of the largest naval⁸ bases in the world and home port to the USS Nicholas.

The crew of five young defendants⁹, mostly fishermen in their mid-20s, had set sail from Somalia in March in search of a merchant vessel to plunder¹⁰（抢夺） , according to documents filed in the federal court.

The men said they were promised thousands of dollars for the hijack.

About eight days later some the men set out to attack the USS Nicholas, which had been deployed¹¹ to the east coast of Africa on an anti-piracy mission.

The Nicholas returned fire and gave chase（追赶） , capturing the defendants and taking them aboard the ship and destroying their skiff（小艇） .

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1 vessel
n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管
参考例句：
The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。 You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

2 hijack
v.劫持，劫机，拦路抢劫
参考例句：
Most countries refuse to give sanctuary to people who hijack aeroplanes.大多数国家拒绝对劫机者提供庇护。 The hijack take place just after the plane take off.劫持是飞机刚起飞后发生的。

3 piracy
n.海盗行为，剽窃，著作权侵害
参考例句：
The government has already adopted effective measures against piracy.政府已采取有效措施惩治盗版行为。 They made the place a notorious centre of piracy.他们把这地方变成了臭名昭著的海盗中心。

4 abducted
劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )；使（肢体等）外展
参考例句：
Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。 The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

5 prosecutors
检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )；告发人；起诉人；公诉人
参考例句：
In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。来自口语例句 You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

6 mandatory
adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者
参考例句：
It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。 There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

7 vessels
n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人
参考例句：
The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。来自《简明英汉词典》 All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 naval
adj.海军的，军舰的，船的
参考例句：
He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。 The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

9 defendants
被告( defendant的名词复数 )
参考例句：
The courts heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession. 法官审判时发现6位被告人曾被迫承认罪行。 As in courts, the defendants are represented by legal counsel. 与法院相同，被告有辩护律师作为代表。来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

10 plunder
vt.劫掠财物，掠夺；n.劫掠物，赃物；劫掠
参考例句：
The thieves hid their plunder in the cave.贼把赃物藏在山洞里。 Trade should not serve as a means of economic plunder.贸易不应当成为经济掠夺的手段。

11 deployed
（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )；施展；部署；有效地利用
参考例句：
Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。 The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。