進入英語學習論壇下載音頻 去聽寫專區一展身手

Eight NATO troops and a contractor died on Wednesday after an Afghan military officer opened fire in a meeting - the deadliest episode to date of an Afghan turning against his own coalition partners, officials said.

The Afghan officer, who was a veteran military pilot, fired on the foreigners after an argument. The shooting occurred in an operations room of the Afghan Air Corps at Kabul airport.

The shooting follows a string of attacks by Afghan security forces against their NATO-led mentors carried out either by "rogue" soldiers or by insurgents in uniform who have managed to infiltrate their ranks.

Such incidents highlight the challenge for US and NATO forces as they try to prepare for a gradual handover of security responsibilities that is scheduled to begin in July and end with the withdrawal of all foreign combat troops by the end of 2014.

"We can confirm an incident took place in the Afghan Air Force compound within the airport involving small-arms fire. We do not know what started the incident, and we believe the incident has now concluded," the International Security Assistance Force spokesman said. "Yes, there are ISAF casualties," he added.

The Afghan Defense Ministry did not provide any more details about the incident, except that the shooting followed a dispute between the pilot and foreign troops.

The Taliban released a statement saying one of its fighters, named Azizullah, was dressed in military uniform and carried out the attack after gaining access to the compound.

On April 18, an insurgent dressed in Afghan army uniform opened fire inside the Afghan Defense Ministry in central Kabul, killing two employees and wounding seven. Earlier this month, an Afghan border policeman shot dead two foreign soldiers on a training mission in the northern province of Faryab.

Questions:

1. How many NATO troops died?

2. Where did the incident happen?

3. When are all foreign combat troops scheduled to withdraw?

Answers:

1. 8.

2. Afghan Air Corps at Kabul airport.

3. End of 2014.

去聽寫專區一展身手

（中國日報網英語點津 Helen 編輯）

About the broadcaster:

Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.