新奇事件簿 沙特伊朗口水仗升级

A war of words has broken out between Iran and Saudi Arabia following the execution of a religious figure by Saudi authorities on Saturday. The Shia Muslim cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr was among 47 men the Saudi Arabian government put to death on terrorism charges. Saudi leaders said Mr al-Nimr had led anti-government protests in the east of the country in 2011-2012. He was previously¹ convicted of disobedience and of bearing arms. Al-Nimr maintained he never carried weapons or called for violence but had encouraged Shia Muslims to resist police bullets using "the roar of the word" instead. Iran's leaders said al-Nimr was killed for being a Shia Muslim. Saudi Arabia is a largely Sunni Muslim country.

周六，因沙特处决著名宗教人士，两国大打口水仗。沙特处决了47名犯有“恐怖主义”罪行囚犯，什叶派教士尼姆尔·阿尔尼姆尔是其中之一。据沙特领导人表示，2011-2012年期间，阿尔尼姆尔曾在沙特东部地区发起反政府抗议活动。他曾犯有携带武器和拒不服从罪。阿尔尼姆尔坚称他从未携带武器，或煽动暴力冲突，他曾鼓励什叶派穆斯林用“排山倒海”之声来抵抗镇压。伊朗领导人表示，阿尔尼姆尔是因什叶派穆斯林身份被杀。沙特是逊尼派人口大国。

Protests against the execution took place in the Iranian capital Tehran on Sunday. Demonstrators stormed the Saudi Arabian embassy and set parts of it on fire. Iran's foreign ministry² said Saudi Arabia would pay a "heavy price" for the execution, including the possible downfall of its government. The Saudi government said Iran had no right to create tensions and said the execution was an internal Saudi matter. The foreign ministry said the killing³ of Mr al-Nimr had nothing to do with his being a Shia Muslim. It said: "There is no difference between what a person does regardless of his ethnic⁴ origin or affiliation⁵, or what he believes. We deal with facts and criminal intent."

周日，民众在首都德黑兰举行抗议示威。示威人士闯进沙特驻伊朗使馆，部分建筑惨遭焚烧。伊朗外交部表示，沙特将为此次处决付出惨痛代价，包括推翻沙特政府。沙特政府表示，伊朗无理由引发两国紧张关系，此次处决为沙特内政。外交部长表示，处决阿尔尼姆尔与是否为什叶派穆斯林并无关系。外交部表示：“不论他来自什么民族，什么组织，什么信仰，我们均一视同仁。我们用事实说话，用犯罪倾向说话。”

1 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

2 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。

3 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。

4 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。

5 affiliation   

n.联系，联合

参考例句：

• There is no affiliation between our organization and theirs,even though our names are similar.尽管两个组织的名称相似，但我们之间并没有关系。
• The kidnappers had no affiliation with any militant group.这些绑架者与任何军事组织都没有紧密联系。