IN THE NEWS - Palestinian, Indonesian and Afghan Leaders Vis

IN THE NEWS - Palestinian, Indonesian and Afghan Leaders Visit President Bush
By Jerilyn Watson

Broadcast: Saturday, May 28, 2005

I'm Steve Ember with IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

The leaders of Afghanistan, Indonesia and the Palestinian Authority met with President Bush in Washington this week.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai visited the White House on Monday. He and Mister Bush signed a cooperation agreement that promises continued American support for Afghanistan.

 
 
But Mister Karzai failed to gain a promise of greater control over United States military operations in his country. Under current policy, American military officials must only inform Afghan officials about planned operations.

Mister Karzai also asked for control over Afghan citizens suspected of terrorism. He called reports of mistreatment of Afghans held by the American military "displeasing¹." But Mister Bush questioned the ability of the Afghan government to house and guard the prisoners.

Also in the United States, Mister Karzai defended his record in fighting the illegal drug trade in his country. He says he hopes Afghanistan will be free of opium² poppies in five or six years.

On Wednesday, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono met with President Bush. They discussed economic ties and military cooperation. Later, the United States said it plans to give Indonesia about four hundred million dollars in tsunami³ aid. That is almost half what the United States has promised to countries struck by the huge earthquake and waves in the Indian Ocean in December. The waves tore across large parts of the Indonesian province of Aceh.

The two presidents also agreed to continue to work to renew normal military relations. In nineteen ninety-nine, Congress ended military aid to Indonesia over human rights concerns. But Indonesia is now involved again in a program that lets Indonesian soldiers study and train in the United States.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visited Mister Bush on Thursday. The Bush administration offered the Palestinian Authority fifty million dollars in direct aid. The money is to help rebuild housing, roads and bridges. President Bush had never invited the former Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, to the White House.

In recent weeks, Afghanistan, Indonesia and the Middle East have all had protests over a report that appeared in Newsweek magazine. It said Americans had mistreated Korans at the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Newsweek later apologized and withdrew the report.

On Thursday, the Defense⁴ Department announced findings from a continuing investigation⁵. Defense officials said investigators⁶ had found five incidents of "mishandling" of the Islamic holy book. They said some appeared accidental.

The officials did not give details of the five cases. But they said there was no proof for the Newsweek report that a Koran had been flushed down a toilet.

On Friday more protests took place in a number of Muslim countries.

IN THE NEWS, in VOA Special English, was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.

1 displeasing   

不愉快的，令人发火的

参考例句：

• Such conduct is displeasing to your parents. 这种行为会使你的父母生气的。
• Omit no harsh line, smooth away no displeasing irregularity. 不能省略任何刺眼的纹路，不能掩饰任何讨厌的丑处。

2 opium   

n.鸦片；adj.鸦片的

参考例句：

• That man gave her a dose of opium.那男人给了她一剂鸦片。
• Opium is classed under the head of narcotic.鸦片是归入麻醉剂一类的东西。

3 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

4 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。

5 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

6 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》