VOA慢速英语2015 也门战争的交战双方与目标

AS IT IS 2015-04-17 War in Yemen: The Players and the Goals 也门战争的交战双方与目标

Have you been following what is happening in Yemen? Are you wondering exacting¹ who is fighting who and for what?

Some Yemenis living overseas say they are not sure what is happening back at home.

This man, a high school teacher, spoke² to VOA at a Yemeni restaurant in Cairo, Egypt. He says returning to Yemen would be dangerous. Yet he adds that not knowing what is happening to his family and his country is far more difficult.

He says the conflict is mainly between the Houthis and Yemen’s internationally-recognized government. But he says everyone knows the situation is more complex than that.                                                            

On one level, observers say Yemen is seen as a proxy³ war between Iran and Saudi Arabia. A proxy war is when a major power fuels a conflict in which it does not become actively⁴ involved. Both Iran and Saudi Arabia are struggling to either keep or change the balance of power in the Middle East.

The Iranian government has denied providing military support to the Houthi fighters in Yemen. Peter Jenkins is a former British ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency. He says the Houthis are not exactly agents of Iran.

“I think it’s wrong to think of the Houthis as proxies⁵ for the Iranians. I think it’s more that there is a mutual⁶ sympathy that rests in part on the Shi’ite brand of Islam, but they’re not proxies so they can’t be controlled by Iran.”

Saudi Arabia, however, is openly fighting the Houthis with airstrikes. A number of countries are supporting the raids. They include the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Morocco, Egypt, Sudan and even the United States.

Activist⁷ Summer Nasser says this show of force is meant to hurt the Houthi forces, but it is also hurting the Yemeni people. She spoke to VOA from her home in southern Yemen.

“Air bombardments by 10 countries are too much for this small, impoverished⁸ society. But if Houthis do dialog, I don’t even think Saudi Arabia will take it seriously because Saudi Arabia wants to destroy Houthis as much as they can before any kind of settlement.”

The Houthis are, and have long been, in firm control of territory in Yemen’s north, near the Saudi border. Since their offensive began last year, the Houthis have taken the capital, Sana’a, and many of the towns and cities along the country’s main road and the road from Sana’a to the port of Aden.

In southern Yemen, the battle lines become more unclear because the Houthis often are not even really Houthis. Ousted⁹ President Ali Abdullah Saleh is now allied¹⁰ with the group. While still in power, his government fought with the Houthis for six years.                                                                      

As a result, Yemen’s armed forces is divided in its loyalties¹¹, with some fighting for Mr. Saleh and some fighting for President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

Others soldiers are not fighting at all, leaving the Yemeni people and tribesmen to fight off the Houthis’ allies. And the unrest continues.

The Houthis are a militia¹² of Zaidi Shias, a group in power for 1,000 years before the 1960s. At that time, a republican army seized power in Yemen. Today, the Houthis remain a large minority in the mostly-Sunni Muslim country.                              

The United Nations says nearly 600 people have been killed the since airstrikes began, and hundreds have fled the country. As the violence continues, Yemeni people are increasingly on neither side. They only want the war to stop.

Words in This Story

home – n. the place where one was born or comes from

complex – adj. having many parts that are difficult to understand; not simple

support – n. holding up or in position; agreement with others to help them reach a goal

sympathy – n. sharing feelings or emotions with another person, usually feelings of sadness

1 exacting   

adj.苛求的，要求严格的

参考例句：

• He must remember the letters and symbols with exacting precision.他必须以严格的精度记住每个字母和符号。
• The public has been more exacting in its demands as time has passed.随着时间的推移，公众的要求更趋严格。

2 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。

3 proxy   

n.代理权，代表权；（对代理人的）委托书；代理人

参考例句：

• You may appoint a proxy to vote for you.你可以委托他人代你投票。
• We enclose a form of proxy for use at the Annual General Meeting.我们附上委任年度大会代表的表格。

4 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

5 proxies   

n.代表权( proxy的名词复数 )；（测算用的）代替物；（对代理人的）委托书；（英国国教教区献给主教等的）巡游费

参考例句：

• SOCKS and proxies are unavailable. Try connecting to XX again? socks和代理不可用。尝试重新连接到XX吗？ 来自互联网
• All proxies are still down. Continue with direct connections? 所有的代理仍然有故障。继续直接连接吗？ 来自互联网

6 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

7 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

8 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

10 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。

11 loyalties   

n.忠诚( loyalty的名词复数 )；忠心；忠于…感情；要忠于…的强烈感情

参考例句：

• an intricate network of loyalties and relationships 忠诚与义气构成的盘根错节的网络
• Rows with one's in-laws often create divided loyalties. 与姻亲之间的矛盾常常让人两面为难。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 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。