2007年VOA标准英语-Iraq Begins Security Crackdown, US Insists Sadr

By Barry Newhouse
Irbil, Iraq
14 February 2007

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki has announced the start of the long-awaited security crackdown in Baghdad. VOA's Barry Newhouse reports from northern Iraq that the U.S. military is also saying that radical¹ Shi'ite cleric and militia² leader Moqtada al Sadr has left the country.

 
Nouri al-Maliki speaks during meeting with officials and leaders in Karbala, 14 Feb 2007
In a televised speech in the Shi'ite city Karbala, Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki announced the beginning of the new effort to rid Baghdad of chaotic³ sectarian fighting.

He said, he thinks the message is clear and is defined not by words but by actions. Maliki called the operation the first step in reconciling Iraq's different groups.

Late Tuesday, the Iraqi general in charge of the crackdown, Abboud Gambar, outlined some of the new security measures.

The general says Iraq will close both of its border crossings with Syria and all four checkpoints with Iran.

The general says the closures will be temporary, with most crossings re-opening with better security equipment after 72 hours. He did not say if Iraq's border crossings with Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Jordan and Kuwait would be affected⁴.

General Gambar said all people unlawfully occupying homes in Baghdad must return to where they came from within 15 days. Baghdad's rampant⁵ sectarian fighting has emptied many neighborhoods of religious and ethnic⁶ minorities. Thousands of squatters now occupy abandoned homes.

He also said Baghdad's nighttime curfew will be extended by an hour and he announced new restrictions⁷ on carrying weapons.

 
An Iraqi army soldier mans a machine gun atop an armored vehicle at a checkpoint in Baghdad's Shiite enclave of Sadr City, 14 Feb 2007
He says only those authorized⁸ to carry weapons will be allowed to do so. Those permitted include American forces, Iraqi defense⁹ and interior ministry¹⁰ forces and some licensed¹¹ private security contractors¹².

Prime Minister Maliki also spoke¹³ Wednesday before a cheering crowd in front of the Shi'ite Karbala mosque¹⁴.

As the crowd chanted, "Our souls, our blood to you Iraq," the prime minister responded to those urging the government to move more quickly to solve Iraq's problems.

He says a faster approach would be a useless waste of time. He also says Iraq's Shi'ite-majority parliament has approved of the more slow-going approach.

A U.S. military spokesman insists the leader of the Shi'ite militia Mahdi Army, has left Iraq. But Moqtada al-Sadr's office in Najaf denies he fled to Iran because of internal disagreements among his followers¹⁵. His office said he remains¹⁶ in Najaf, but has reduced public appearances for security reasons.

 
Maj. Gen. William Caldwell at a press conference in Baghdad, 14 Feb 2007
Major General William Caldwell told reporters in Baghdad that, despite the denials, U.S. officials still believe Sadr left Iraq, but the general refused to say why.

"We will acknowledge that we know he is not in the country and all indications are, in fact, he is in Iran and left sometime last month," he said.

Meanwhile, the U.S. military says it killed 15 suspected terrorists in operations in the Iraqi capital and detained 27 suspected al-Qaida members in Baghdad and Ramadi.

American officials also confirm the Marine¹⁷ transport helicopter that crashed last week, in al Anbar Province, was shot down by enemy fire. Military officials had initially¹⁸ said the crash, which killed all seven Americans on board, was caused by mechanical problems.

U.S. officials say they are reviewing flying procedures, after losing several helicopters to enemy fire in recent weeks.

1 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

2 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

3 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。

4 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

5 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。

6 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

7 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

8 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。

9 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。

10 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。

11 licensed   

adj.得到许可的v.许可，颁发执照(license的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The new drug has not yet been licensed in the US. 这种新药尚未在美国获得许可。
• Is that gun licensed? 那支枪有持枪执照吗？

12 contractors   

n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Contractors winning construction jobs had to kick back 2 per cent of the contract price to the mafia. 赢得建筑工作的承包商得抽出合同价格的百分之二的回扣给黑手党。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

14 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

15 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

16 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

17 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

18 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。