Top Taliban arrested in Pakistan

One of the highest ranking Taliban officials in Pakistan has been arrested with four other militants² in the country's north-west, officials say.

Muslim Khan was a key spokesman for the Taliban as well as being one of the most senior militant¹ commanders in the Swat valley.

The army recently staged an offensive(进攻) there, which it declared a success.

The BBC's M Ilyas Khan in Islamabad says this is a significant milestone³ for the army's operation in Swat.

One of the chief criticisms of the military operation there has been that it failed to net the top Taliban leadership in the region, our correspondent says.

The whereabouts and fate of the Taliban leader in Swat, Maulana Fazlullah, is currently unknown.

After reports that he was close to death earlier this year after being seriously wounded, Muslim Khan contacted the BBC to say the Taliban chief was "alive and healthy".

The military said Mr Khan was apprehended⁴ after a "successful operation"

He was detained along with fellow militant Mahmood Khan, also reported to be one of the most senior Taliban commanders in Swat.

The militants had rewards of 10 million rupees ($121,000) on their heads.

Swat 'corpses⁵'

The latest fighting in the Swat valley began in April when Pakistani Taliban forces expanded their operations into districts only 96km (60 miles) from the capital.

Under the terms of a peace deal, militants were expected（扩张） to disarm⁶ in exchange for the implementation⁷ of Sharia law throughout the Malakand division, which includes Swat valley.

The army accused the Taliban of reneging on the deal. As the fighting intensified⁸ some two million people were displaced.

Although many have returned to the district, there is still unrest and bloodshed in the trouble district.

In recent weeks, more than 200 corpses have been found across valley.

The killings⁹ have been carried out execution-style and the bodies are believed to be of suspected （怀疑）Taliban militants.

Security forces have strenuously¹⁰ denied carrying out extra-judicial killings as part of their anti-Taliban offensive.

The Taliban in Pakistan recently confirmed the death of its leader, Baitullah Mehsud, who was reported to have been killed by a US missile strike earlier this month.

Militant commander Hakimullah Mehsud was named as his successor.（本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑）

1 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

2 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

3 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

4 apprehended   

逮捕，拘押( apprehend的过去式和过去分词 )； 理解

参考例句：

• She apprehended the complicated law very quickly. 她很快理解了复杂的法律。
• The police apprehended the criminal. 警察逮捕了罪犯。

5 corpses   

n.死尸，尸体( corpse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The living soldiers put corpses together and burned them. 活着的战士把尸体放在一起烧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Overhead, grayish-white clouds covered the sky, piling up heavily like decaying corpses. 天上罩满了灰白的薄云，同腐烂的尸体似的沉沉的盖在那里。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

6 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。

7 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

8 intensified   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Violence intensified during the night. 在夜间暴力活动加剧了。
• The drought has intensified. 旱情加剧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

10 strenuously   

adv.奋发地，费力地

参考例句：

• The company has strenuously defended its decision to reduce the workforce. 公司竭力为其裁员的决定辩护。
• She denied the accusation with some warmth, ie strenuously, forcefully. 她有些激动，竭力否认这一指责。