新闻周刊:美国专家预测,美伊战争将以双方的灾难告终(3)

Indeed, Iran has form for such operations. It funded, armed and trained Iraqi insurgents¹ fighting the U.S. occupation of the country after the 2003 invasion. The U.S. military claims Iran was directly to blame for the deaths of 608 military personnel in Iraq between 2003 and 2011. Iran still holds significant influence with many of these well-trained, well-funded and motivated militias—influence that worries the U.S. enough that the State Department has ordered the evacuation of all non-emergency staff from the U.S. embassy in Baghdad and the U.S. consulate² in Erbil.

事实上，伊朗已经具备了开展此类行动的条件。它资助、武装和训练伊拉克叛乱分子，在2003年美国入侵伊拉克后与美国占领的伊拉克作战。美国军方声称，伊朗对2003年至2011年608名伊拉克军人的死亡负有直接责任。伊朗在这些训练有素、资金充足、动机积极的民兵组织中仍然拥有重要的影响力，这让美国非常担忧，以至于美国国务院下令从美国驻巴格达大使馆和驻埃尔比勒领事馆撤出所有非紧急工作人员。

Daniel Byman, a professor at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, said this shows Iran can hit U.S. and allied³ targets not only regionally, but also further afield. "(Iran) uses international terrorism, and the U.S. has a global presence," he explained.

乔治敦大学外交学院教授丹尼尔·拜曼说，这表明伊朗不仅可以打击美国及其盟国的地区目标，还可以打击更远的地区。他说:“伊朗利用国际恐怖主义，美国在全球都有存在。

A network of Iranian allies and sympathizers spans much of the northern part of the region, Freeman added, "as well as Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province and Bahrain—where the U.S. Fifth Fleet is headquartered," giving Iran the means to pick targets across the Middle East. "It very likely also has put in place means by which to mount unconventional—or 'terrorist'—counter-strikes on the U.S. homeland," he noted⁴.

弗里曼补充说，伊朗的盟友和同情者网络覆盖了该地区北部的大部分地区，“以及沙特阿拉伯东部省份和巴林——美国第五舰队的总部所在地，”这让伊朗有了在中东挑选目标的手段。他说:“它很可能还采取了对美国本土发动非常规或‘恐怖主义’反击的手段。”

Having been victim to the devastating⁵ U.S.-Israeli Stuxnet cyber attack in 2010, the country has also invested heavily in its ability to launch such attacks against the U.S. and its regional allies.

曾是毁灭性的美国的受害者在2010年，美国还在对美国及其地区盟友发动此类攻击的能力上投入了巨资。

The country would likely use its fleet of more than 200 armed speed boats to target or harass⁶ U.S. naval⁷ vessels⁸ or commercial shipping⁹ in the Gulf¹⁰ and the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 percent of all oil traded worldwide transits¹¹. Tehran has regularly threatened to close off the Strait with naval mines, anti-ship missiles and its own navy in the event of a conflict.

伊朗可能会动用其200多艘武装快艇，在墨西哥湾和霍尔木兹海峡袭击或骚扰美国海军舰艇或商业船只。全球20%的石油运输都要经过霍尔木兹海峡。德黑兰经常威胁说，如果发生冲突，伊朗将动用水雷、反舰导弹和本国海军封锁霍尔木斯海峡。

1 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

2 consulate   

n.领事馆

参考例句：

• The Spanish consulate is the large white building opposite the bank.西班牙领事馆是银行对面的那栋高大的白色建筑物。
• The American consulate was a magnificent edifice in the centre of Bordeaux.美国领事馆是位于波尔多市中心的一座宏伟的大厦。

3 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

4 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。

5 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

6 harass   

vt.使烦恼，折磨，骚扰

参考例句：

• Our mission is to harass the landing of the main Japaness expeditionary force.我们的任务是骚乱日本远征军主力的登陆。
• They received the order to harass the enemy's rear.他们接到骚扰敌人后方的命令。

7 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

8 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

10 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

11 transits   

通过（transit的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The anomalistic year is the time between successive transits of the Earth through the perihelion. 近点年是地球连续两次通过近日点之间的时间。
• Paradigm study gradually transits to exemplification study in civil society theory. 当前我国的市民社会理论正逐步从范式研究转向范例研究。