2006年VOA标准英语-Twin Suicide Bombings Kill Dozens in Iraq

By Michael Bowman
Washington
12 November 2006

Bomb blasts at an Iraqi police facility have killed at least 35 people and left dozens of others wounded. Continued violence in Iraq comes as newly-empowered U.S. Democratic lawmakers urge a timeline for withdrawal¹ of U.S. forces from the country.

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Salim Abdul Nabi and his wife grieve over the death of their son, Ali, age 7, killed in an explosion in Baghdad,  November 12, 2006
  
Twin suicide bombers² simultaneously³ detonated explosives at an Iraqi police recruitment facility in western Baghdad Sunday. Many of those killed were young men waiting to join the police force. Several other deadly bombings and shootings were reported elsewhere in the city.

Meanwhile, security forces continue to search for Sunni gunmen who set up a fake security checkpoint on an Iraqi highway Saturday, killing⁴ at least 10 Shi'ite travelers and kidnapping dozens of others.

 
Residents gather at the scene following an explosion in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Nov. 12, 2006
  
The latest violence comes amid reports that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki plans to reshape his cabinet. Specific names and posts to be reorganized have not been publicly identified, but the prime minister is widely believed to be dissatisfied with his cabinet's performance in attempting to quell⁵ rampant⁶ sectarian violence.

In the United States, broad public dissatisfaction with the war in Iraq was credited as a major factor in the outcome of last week's legislative⁷ elections, in which opposition⁸ Democrats⁹ garnered¹⁰ new majorities in both houses of Congress.

The likely incoming Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Carl Levin of Michigan, says Democrats will press for a gradual withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq beginning next year.

"There is no military solution in Iraq, there is only a political solution in Iraq," said Senator Levin. "And the reason we have to tell the Iraqis that the open-ended commitment is over and we are going to begin to have a phased withdrawal in four to six months is [that] we have got to put pressure on them to do what only the Iraqi leaders can do, which is to work out a political solution."

Senator Levin was speaking on ABC's This Week program.

But the Bush administration continues to insist that setting a timetable for a troop pullout in Iraq would be disastrous¹¹ for the Iraqi people and gravely imperil the war on terror. White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten also appeared on This Week.

"The important thing is that this be done in a way that the Iraqis can succeed. That we can have a democratic government there that can govern itself, sustain itself, defend itself, and be an ally in the war on terror," he noted¹². "It is hard for me to see how that can be done on a fixed¹³ timetable. It has got to be done based on the conditions on the ground."

Bolten added, however, that President Bush is open to new ideas on how to proceed in Iraq, including from Democrats.

1 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

2 bombers   

n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 )；投弹手；安非他明胶囊；大麻叶香烟

参考例句：

• Enemy bombers carried out a blitz on the city. 敌军轰炸机对这座城市进行了突袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Royal Airforce sill remained dangerously short of bombers. 英国皇家空军仍未脱离极为缺乏轰炸机的危境。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 simultaneously   

adv.同时发生地，同时进行地

参考例句：

• The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
• The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。

4 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

5 quell   

v.压制，平息，减轻

参考例句：

• Soldiers were sent in to quell the riots.士兵们被派去平息骚乱。
• The armed force had to be called out to quell violence.不得不出动军队来镇压暴力行动。

6 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

7 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

8 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。

9 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 garnered   

v.收集并（通常）贮藏（某物），取得，获得( garner的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith gradually garnered a national reputation as a financial expert. 史密斯先生逐渐赢得全国金融专家的声誉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He has garnered extensive support for his proposals. 他的提议得到了广泛的支持。 来自辞典例句

11 disastrous   

adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的

参考例句：

• The heavy rainstorm caused a disastrous flood.暴雨成灾。
• Her investment had disastrous consequences.She lost everything she owned.她的投资结果很惨，血本无归。

12 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

13 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。