New U.S. Task Force Targets Iran’s Land Routes

What is this new task force supposed to do?

It is meant to stop military technology and illegal money from entering or leaving Iran. Central Command says it will focus on trade routes over land.

So it is connected to the U.S. naval blockade around Iran.

Yes. Central Command says the task force should extend the blockade's work beyond sea routes. It will also include routes through the Caspian Sea.

Do we know how the task force will operate?

There are not many details yet. The United States has not said whether it will use military action to stop banned goods or money moving on these routes.

How has Iran reacted to the announcement?

Iran's military dismissed the task force as “word play.” It did not give more details in the information available.

And what has President Donald Trump said?

On Sunday, President Trump said Task Force Iron Gate was already in force. He also said the naval blockade was making it very hard for things to enter or leave Iran.

What other action has Central Command announced?

On Friday, it offered up to 20 million dollars for information about Iran's nuclear programme. The information could concern its facilities, equipment, or people connected to the programme.

Would people giving information receive anything else?

Central Command said the offer could also include relocation. That means moving a person to a different place for safety.

What is the situation with talks between the United States and Iran?

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that the two sides were not close to a breakthrough. A breakthrough is an important step forward in talks.

What did he say was holding the talks back?

Rubio said several countries were still speaking with Iran and offering ideas. However, he said Iran's demands were unacceptable, unrealistic, and had not made the talks productive.

What should listeners watch for next?

They should watch for details about how Task Force Iron Gate will work, especially whether military force will be involved.

Thank you, Ethan.

Our second story is about a rare and colourful flower display in Chile's Atacama Desert.

Sophie is LinguaWire's environment correspondent. She has been covering the bloom.

Hello, Daniel. Heavy winter rain has turned parts of the Atacama Desert into fields of flowers. Pink, yellow, lilac, and purple flowers now cover large areas of the desert floor.

The Atacama is one of the driest places on Earth. Why did it receive so much rain?

The rain came with the El Niño weather pattern. Some places received their heaviest rainfall since records began in the 1950s.

The rain brought problems as well as flowers.

It did. Flash floods in July and August destroyed or damaged dozens of homes. Hundreds of people had to leave their homes.

How did the rain create such a large bloom?

The water went deeper into the dry ground than it had for decades. It reached millions of seeds, bulbs, and tubers under the sand.

Had these plants been waiting there for a long time?

Many had been dormant, or inactive, for decades. Now more than 200 species are in flower. This is the largest and most colourful bloom in 30 years, and it may be the biggest ever.

How has the desert changed as the bloom has grown?

About a month ago, the first plants made a pale-yellow haze. Later, other bulbs grew and added a soft purple colour. Now flowers appear in many low areas and cracks in the ground.

Have researchers found flowers in unexpected places?

Yes. Scientists say some flowering areas have never been recorded before. They suggest bulbs in these places may have stayed dormant since before the phenomenon was closely studied in 1997.

Why is this short period so important for the plants?

Moisés Grimberg, the administrator of Llanos de Challe National Park, calls the desert a natural seed bank. He says the rain gives these species only about two to three months to complete their life cycle.

The bloom has also brought many visitors.

It has. The park normally receives about 10,000 visitors each year. In the last few weeks, 15,000 tourists have visited, and Chile's tourism board expects around 300,000 overnight trips to the region during the bloom.

What is one unusual flower people can see there?

The garra de león is a crimson flower with nectar inside and long green leaves like flames. It grows along only a few miles of this Atacama coast, and nowhere else in the world.

Thank you, Sophie.

Part one: vocabulary.

Dormant.

It means inactive for a long time. In the story, “Many had been dormant, or inactive, for decades.”

The seeds stayed dormant during the dry summer.

Bulb.

It is a round part of some plants that grows under the ground. In the story, “It reached millions of seeds, bulbs, and tubers under the sand.”

Each bulb can grow into a flower.

Nectar.

It is a sweet liquid inside some flowers. In the story, “The garra de león is a crimson flower with nectar inside and long green leaves like flames.”

Bees drink nectar from flowers.

Part two: the grammar.

Past perfect with had been: “Many had been dormant, or inactive, for decades.”

Use had been to say that something was in a state before a later time in the past.

I, you, we, and they had been; he, she, and it had been.

Listen again: “Many had been dormant, or inactive, for decades.”

Before the storm, the road had been closed for two days.

Repeat after me: Many had been dormant, or inactive, for decades.