2006年VOA标准英语-Israel to Step Up Military Offensive in Gaza

By Robert Berger
Jerusalem
05 July 2006
 
Israel is stepping up its military offensive in the Gaza Strip.  Israel and the Palestinian Authority have been on a collision course since an Israeli soldier was kidnapped last week from an army base on the Gaza border.

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A wounded Palestinian man covered in dust from explosion is helped into his house following Israeli missile strike on Palestinian Interior Ministry¹ in Gaza City, early Wednesday, July 5, 2006  
  
Israel's Security Cabinet has authorized² the army to send troops into Palestinian towns in northern Gaza.  The military was also given a green light to proceed with plans to carve out a buffer³ zone in a bid to end weeks of rocket attacks on Israeli border communities.

The cabinet called an urgent meeting after a rocket fired Tuesday from Gaza hit the Israeli city of Ashkelon.  It caused no injuries, but it is a sign that Palestinian militants⁴ have improved the capabilities⁵ of their homemade Kassam rockets.

[Palestinian militants have fired a second rocket at Israel's southern coastal⁶ city of Ashkelon, as Israeli tanks advanced in the Gaza Strip in an effort to halt such attacks. Israeli officials say no one was injured in the rocket attack late Wednesday. But news reports say several people, including two children, were suffering from shock.]

The military wing of the ruling Islamic group Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.  Tensions between Israel and the Hamas-led Palestinian government have escalated⁷ since gunmen from the group kidnapped an Israeli soldier 10 days ago.

The planned ground offensive in Gaza is the first since Israeli soldiers and settlers withdrew from the territory nearly a year ago. Spokesman Ra'anan Gissin says the Israel Defense⁸ Forces will achieve its objectives no matter how long it takes.

"We have no intention of staying in Gaza or perpetuating⁹ this operation forever," Gissin said. "But if it will be necessary, we will continue to apply the pressure.  We will continue in, I would say, a very rich menu of means available to the I.D.F. which it has not yet exhausted¹⁰ it."

Moderate Palestinian legislator Saeb Erekat urged Israel to reconsider.

"I do not know what will this do other than strengthen extremism, add to the complexities¹¹, enlarge the cycle of violence and that is my point," Erekat said.

Israeli officials say Hamas crossed a line with the kidnapping of the soldier and the rocket attack on Ashkelon.  Hamas says if Palestinians are killed, there will also be blood on the streets of Israeli cities.

1 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

2 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

3 buffer   

n.起缓冲作用的人(或物)，缓冲器；vt.缓冲

参考例句：

• A little money can be a useful buffer in time of need.在急需时，很少一点钱就能解燃眉之急。
• Romantic love will buffer you against life's hardships.浪漫的爱会减轻生活的艰辛。

4 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。

5 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

6 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

7 escalated   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The fighting escalated into a full-scale war. 这场交战逐步扩大为全面战争。
• The demonstration escalated into a pitched battle with the police. 示威逐步升级，演变成了一场同警察的混战。

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

9 perpetuating   

perpetuate的现在进行式

参考例句：

• Revenge leads to a self-perpetuating cycle of violence. 怨怨相报会导致永不休止的暴力。
• It'set out to eradicate heresy, and ended by perpetuating it. 它的目的只是要根除异端邪说，结果却巩固了异端邪说。 来自英汉文学

10 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

11 complexities   

复杂性(complexity的名词复数)； 复杂的事物

参考例句：

• The complexities of life bothered him. 生活的复杂使他困惑。
• The complexities of life bothered me. 生活的杂乱事儿使我心烦。