F2F Class Notes (Raph)[R]

Vocabulary

Reading

Brandish (v): 1- to wave something in the air in a threatening or excited way:
E.g.: She brandished a saucepan at me so I ran out of the kitchen.

Resilient (adj): 1- able to quickly return to a previous good condition or to recover from a difficult situation.
E.g.: This rubber ball is very resilient and immediately springs back into shape.
E.g.: She’s a resilient girl – she won’t be unhappy for long.

Deranged (adj): 1- completely unable to think clearly or behave in a controlled way, especially because of mental illness:
E.g.: A deranged criminal killed three people in the middle of the crowded street.

Condolence (n): 1- sympathy and sadness for the family or close friends of a person who has recently died, or an expression of this, especially in written form.
E.g.: The president wrote a letter of condolence to the family of the soldier.
E.g.: Dignitaries from all over the world came to offer their condolences.

Grainy (adj): 1- If photographs are grainy, they are not clear because the many black and white or coloured dots that make up the image can be seen.
E.g.: It’s such a pity that all the photos from the party look so grainy!

Reading

New York City terror attack: what we know so far
(Source: www.vox.com/2017/10/31/16587120/new-york-city-terror-attack-what-we-know)

A 29-year-old suspect allegedly rammed a rented pickup truck into pedestrians and cyclists on a bike path along the Hudson River.

  • A 29-year-old man driving a rental truck drove into a pedestrian and bike path along the Hudson River in Lower Manhattan in New York City Tuesday, killing at least eight people in what New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is calling “an act of terror.â€

    Multiple news outlets have identified the suspect as Sayfullo Saipov, a 29-year-old man who reportedly came from Uzbekistan in 2010. He was shot and wounded by a New York City police officer and has been taken into custody, police said at a press conference Tuesday evening.

    No terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and there is no information about the driver’s motive, but the method — driving a truck into a crowd of pedestrians or bicyclists — matches a style of attack used by global terrorist groups in other cities around the world.

    What we know

  • At around 3:05 pm Tuesday, a 29-year-old male suspect drove a pickup truck southbound down the bike path along the West Side Highway in lower Manhattan, police officials said at a press conference at 5:15 pm Eastern time.
  • So far, eight people have died and at least 11 have been hospitalized with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to the New York Fire Department.
  • The suspect has been identified as Sayfullo Saipov, a 29-year-old man who had once lived in Tampa, Florida and New Jersey, CBS, the Associated Press, and the Wall Street Journal reported, citing law enforcement officials. Saipov immigrated to the United States legally from Uzbekistan in 2010, according to the New York Times.
  • The truck driver started his rampage near Houston Street, tearing down approximately 20 city blocks on a bike path along the Hudson River popular with cyclists and runners. The suspect struck “several†pedestrians and cyclists, NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill told reporters at the press conference.
  • The truck came to a stop after it collided with a school bus near Stuyvesant High School, near Chambers Street, police said at the press conference, adding that after the crash, the suspect got out of the truck brandishing a paintball and pellet gun.
  • At least four passengers — two adults and two children — were on the school bus when the pickup driver slammed into it, Commissioner O’Neill said. The children are among the injured.
  • A witness recorded a cellphone video of what appears to be the driver after he jumped out of truck and before he was taken down by police. The grainy footage shows the alleged suspect weaving between taxi cabs near the crime scene:
  • The suspect yelled “Allahu Akbarâ€after he emerged from truck, according to reports multiple eyewitnesses, including law enforcement officials. “He did make a statement,†O’Neill said, but police so far have not confirmed the words used.
  • A police officer shot the driver in the abdomen. The suspect is now in custody and was transported to a hospital, police say.
  • Police are investigating it as a terrorist attack: “Based on the information we have so far, this was an act of terror,†New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said at the press conference.
  • De Blasio called New Yorkers “resilient†in a tweet shortly after he spoke at the press conference:
  • New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo added during the presser that there is “no ongoing threat,†and NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill said “this incident is over.â€
  • On Twitter, President Trump called the attacker “a very sick and deranged person.â€
  • He followed up on Twitter, saying “we must not allow ISIS to return.†He later offered his condolences to “the victims and families of the New York City terrorist attack.â€
  • The White House released an official statement from the president Tuesday evening. “My administration will provide its full support to the New York City Police Department, including through a joint investigation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation,†the statement read.
  • Some of the victims were from other countries: Belgium’s deputy prime minister announced that at least one of his country’s citizens had been killed in the attack in Manhattan. The Associated Press reports that Argentina’s foreign ministry has confirmed the deaths of “several†of its citizens.
  • This appears to be the deadliest attack in New York City since the 9/11 attacks, based on the current death toll. Last September, Ahmad Khan Rahimi set off shrapnel-packed explosives in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, injuring 30. He was convictedearlier this month of all charges, including for the use of a weapon of mass destruction, and faces life in prison.

What we don’t know

  • The identities of the victims
  • Whether the driver was affiliated with any terrorist groups
  • The final number of the deceased and injured

Pronunciation

Allege: /əˈledʒ/

Pedestrian: /pəˈdes.tri.ən/

Collide: /kəˈlaɪd/

Abdomen: /ˈæb.də.mən/