VOA慢速英语2010年-IN THE NEWS - Bombings in Uganda Raise

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

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Ugandans buried their dead this week after bombings that killed more than seventy people in Kampala. The victims, including an American, were watching the World Cup final on television Sunday at two social places in the capital.

The group al-Shabab says it organized the attacks because Uganda supplies troops to support the temporary government in Somalia. Al-Shabab is tied to al-Qaida and aims to make Somalia into an Islamic state. It controls large parts of Mogadishu and the south. Al-Shabab means "The Youth" in Arabic.

The Kampala bombings were its first attacks outside Somalia -- and its leader called them "just the beginning."

On Thursday several Mogadishu radio stations broadcast a message from Ahmed Abdi Godane, also known as Abu Zubayr. He said attacks will continue as revenge for the deaths of Somalis killed by African Union peacekeepers in Mogadishu. Human rights groups have condemned¹ all sides in the Somali capital for causing civilian² deaths.

The burial of Alice Kyalimpa, one of over 70 people killed Sunday in a bombing in Kampala. Al-Shabab claimed responsibility.

Officials say the African Union will hold its big meeting in Kampala this coming week as planned. Somalia is expected to be a major issue.

More than six thousand peacekeepers from Uganda and Burundi are in Mogadishu to protect the airport, seaport³ and other places. The United States has provided them with light weapons, training and other support.

Al-Shabab has also made new threats to target Burundi's capital, Bujumbura. But Uganda is the main provider of troops to the African Union Mission in Somalia. Uganda plans to send two thousand more troops. And President Yoweri Museveni recently joined other east African leaders in calling for a mission with twenty thousand troops.

He says Ugandan troops in Somalia have been involved only in defensive⁴ duties. Now, he is calling for an offensive against al-Shabab. But several Ugandan and other east-African politicians and commentators⁵ have urged Uganda to withdraw.

Uganda's main opposition⁶ leader this week asked why Uganda and Burundi are providing troops while other African leaders ignore the problem.

For three years, al-Shabab has led militants⁷ in battles -- mostly against the peacekeepers -- for control of Mogadishu. Only a few city blocks remain under government control.

Al-Shabab fighters during an exercise in Mogadishu early this year

Uganda sent the first troops in March of two thousand seven to help secure the capital. That was after Ethiopia's military ousted⁸ Islamists from power.

The bombings in Kampala have led to a number of arrests. An unexploded suicide bomb vest was found at a third location, a disco club.

President Obama says the attacks show that extremists have no respect for African lives or efforts for a better future. He told the South African Broadcasting Corporation that al-Shabab and other terror groups must be stopped.

BARACK OBAMA: "If al-Shabab takes more and more control within Somalia, it is going to be exporting violence the way it just did in Uganda."

The United States is helping⁹ Uganda investigate the attacks. The United States is also offering support to other countries in the area to help prevent other attacks.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.
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Includes reporting by Peter Heinlein in Uganda, Alisha Ryu and Michael Onyiego in Kenya, Kent Klein at the White House and David Gollust at the State Department
 

1 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

2 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

3 seaport   

n.海港，港口，港市

参考例句：

• Ostend is the most important seaport in Belgium.奥斯坦德是比利时最重要的海港。
• A seaport where ships can take on supplies of coal.轮船能够补充煤炭的海港。

4 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

5 commentators   

n.评论员( commentator的名词复数 )；时事评论员；注释者；实况广播员

参考例句：

• Sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 体育解说员翻来覆去说着同样的词语，真叫人腻烦。
• Television sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 电视体育解说员说来说去就是那么几句话，令人厌烦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

7 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。

8 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。