USA under Attack

jihad: 圣战(伊斯兰教徒对异教徒的战争) Technically, this means the struggle to do good, referring to a battle with the conscience over the right course of action at any point in life, menial or significant. It only came to be associated with the idea of a "holy war" after the crusades.
Example: Afghanistan's ruling Taliban has mobilized 300,000 Afghans for jihad, or holy war, against the United States, the Islamic militia's defense minister said Monday.

Ground zero: The point of impact of a conventional missile or the point of detonation of an atomic device. Ground zero in this case is used to mean the rubble at the bases of where the twin towers stood. （ 常规导弹瞄准的目标或核设备爆炸点，Ground zero 在这次美国9·11恐怖袭击事件中指当初世贸中心姊妹楼矗立的地方已变成了一堆废墟。）

want somebody dead or alive 无论(罪犯等)是生是死, 都要将其缉拿
President George W Bush said on Monday the United States wants terrorism suspect Osama bin Laden "dead or alive".
美国总统布什9月17日称，不管沙特流亡大亨本·拉登"是死是活"，美国都要将其绳之以法。

hijack (劫持): Hijacked planes destroyed twin towers.

slam into (猛烈撞击): Three planes commandeered by unknown hijackers slammed into the Pentagon and New York's landmark World Trade Center on Tuesday.

take responsibility for (负责): No group took immediate responsibility for the attack.

death toll (死亡人数): New York Mayor said the death toll could ultimately be ``horrific''.

casualties (伤亡人员): The city's hospitals were swamped with casualties.

rescue (营救): Hundreds of firefighters and police are missing and feared dead after trying to rescue others.

twin towers (姊妹楼, 又称双子座, 美国世贸中心的主要建筑): The planes demolished the twin 110-story towers that were once the tallest buildings in the world.

Kamikaze attack (神风式飞机的攻击--二战时期日本的与对手同归于尽的自杀性飞行攻击): Minutes later came the report of a third kamikaze attack on the Pentagon.

evacuate (疏散): Not knowing if more attacks were on the way, authorities evacuated key landmarks like the White House, the fire-damaged Pentagon, the Sears Tower in Chicago, the CIAbuilding and the Walt Disney theme parks.

disastrous attacks(灾难性的袭击), express condolence to somebody(向某人表示哀悼): Chinese President Jiang Zemin expressed deep sympathy to Bush and to the US Government and people for the disastrous attacks against the US. He also expressed condolences to the family members of the victims.

deliberate and deadly terrorist acts (有预谋的、致命的恐怖主义行动): Today, our fellow citizens, our way of life, our very freedom came under attack in a series of deliberate and deadly terrorist acts.

emergency teams（紧急救援队）: Our emergency teams are working in New York City and Washington, D.C., to help with local rescue efforts.

every walk of life (各行各业):This is a day when all Americans from every walk of life unite in our resolve for justice and peace.

victim (受害者): Rescue workers used commuter ferries to carry victims across the Hudson River to safety in Hoboken.

retaliation (报复): Army Gen. Henry Shelton, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declined to discuss possible U.S. retaliation for the attacks.

mass rescue (大规模援救): New York begins massive rescue effort.

rescue crews (救援人员): Air Force F-16s circled in the sky as rescue crews worked the scene this afternoon.

collapse (倒塌): At the Pentagon, the symbol and command center for the nation's military force, one side of the building collapsed as smoke billowed over the Potomac River.

highest alert (一级戒备): The U.S. military went on highest alert today after the worst terrorist attacks in the nation's history crippled New York's financial center and struck at the heart of the federal government in Washington.

fly a flag at half-mast (降半旗)

a nightmarish day (噩梦般的一天); shoot down civilian airliners(击落民航飞机) : It was the toughest decision on a nightmarish day -- to shoot down civilian airliners if they threatened the US Capitol or White House after attacks on New York and Washington, vice-president Dick Cheney said on Sunday.

hand over (交出，移交):A delegation of senior Pakistani officials will go to Afghanistan on Monday to demand that the ruling Taliban militia hand over Osama bin Laden to the United States, a top government official said.

hard-line Islamists (强硬派伊斯兰教徒); take up arms for (拿起武器支持……): Pakistan's decision to give "full support" to the United States drew widespread protest Sunday from hard-line Islamists. Demonstrators burned U.S. flags, shouted their support of bin Laden, and warned the government they would take up arms for Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia.