US Officials Announce Tighter Border Security in Iraq

US Officials Announce Tighter Border Security in Iraq

 

Laurie Kassman

 

U.S. administrator¹ in Iraq Paul Bremer says border security will be tightened² following Tuesday's terror attacks on Shi'ite worshipers in Baghdad and Karbala. Iraq's Governing Council says the signing of Iraq's interim³ constitution, which is postponed⁴ to the end of a three-day mourning period for the victims, will take place on Friday. The Council puts the death toll⁵ of Tuesday's attacks at 271, sharply higher than U.S. coalition⁶ estimates.

 

The top U.S. administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, blamed foreign terrorists, naming al-Qaida operative Abu Musad al Zarqawi, for trying to ignite civil war and disrupt Iraq's efforts to establish a stable democratic government. "In spite of the death toll, in spite of the wounded, as Iraqis across the political spectrum⁷ have made clear in their statements, efforts to provoke sectarian violence have failed and will fail."

 

Mr. Bremer says the U.S. administration will contribute $60 million to increase border security. He says police forces in selected areas would be doubled and more equipment would be added. There are currently eight thousand border police on the job.

 

As a sign the violence has not abated⁹, mortars¹¹ were fired late Wednesday into the so-called Green Zone in central Baghdad where the U.S. coalition forces are headquartered. The attack delayed Mr. Bremer's news briefing.

 

Iraqi police on Wednesday said they have apprehended¹³ 15 suspects in connection with the bombings in Baghdad and Karbala.

 

Earlier in the day mourners began the grim task of burying victims of the blasts. They carried coffins¹⁴, draped with Iraqi flags and traditional black banners of mourning, in front of the same shrines¹⁶ in Baghdad and Karbala where tragedy had struck just one day before.

 

注释：

security [si5kjuEriti] n. 安全

worshiper [5w:FIpE(r)] n. 崇拜者

interim [5intErim] adj. 过渡时期

death toll 死亡人数

ignite [i^5nait] v. 点燃

disrupt [dis5rQpt] v. 使瓦解

spectrum [5spektrEm] n. 派别，系列，范围

abate⁸ [E5beit] vt. 减少，减轻

mortar¹⁰ [5mC:tE] n. 迫击炮

apprehend¹² [7Apri5hend] vt. 逮捕

suspect [sEs5pekt] n. 嫌疑犯

grim [^rim] adj. 严酷的

blast [blB:st] n. 爆炸

shrine¹⁵ [Frain] n. 圣地

1 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

2 tightened   

收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧

参考例句：

• The rope holding the boat suddenly tightened and broke. 系船的绳子突然绷断了。
• His index finger tightened on the trigger but then relaxed again. 他的食指扣住扳机，然后又松开了。

3 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

4 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

5 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

6 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

7 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

8 abate   

vi.(风势，疼痛等)减弱，减轻，减退

参考例句：

• We must abate the noise pollution in our city.我们必须消除我们城里的噪音污染。
• The doctor gave him some medicine to abate the powerful pain.医生给了他一些药，以减弱那剧烈的疼痛。

9 abated   

减少( abate的过去式和过去分词 )； 减去； 降价； 撤消（诉讼）

参考例句：

• The worker's concern about cuts in the welfare funding has not abated. 工人们对削减福利基金的关心并没有减少。
• The heat has abated. 温度降低了。

10 mortar   

n.灰浆，灰泥；迫击炮；v.把…用灰浆涂接合

参考例句：

• The mason flushed the joint with mortar.泥工用灰浆把接缝处嵌平。
• The sound of mortar fire seemed to be closing in.迫击炮的吼声似乎正在逼近。

11 mortars   

n.迫击炮( mortar的名词复数 )；砂浆；房产；研钵

参考例句：

• They could not move their heavy mortars over the swampy ground. 他们无法把重型迫击炮移过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Where the hell are his mortars? 他有迫击炮吗？ 来自教父部分

12 apprehend   

vt.理解，领悟，逮捕，拘捕，忧虑

参考例句：

• I apprehend no worsening of the situation.我不担心局势会恶化。
• Police have not apprehended her killer.警察还未抓获谋杀她的凶手。

13 apprehended   

逮捕，拘押( apprehend的过去式和过去分词 )； 理解

参考例句：

• She apprehended the complicated law very quickly. 她很快理解了复杂的法律。
• The police apprehended the criminal. 警察逮捕了罪犯。

14 coffins   

n.棺材( coffin的名词复数 )；使某人早亡[死，完蛋，垮台等]之物

参考例句：

• The shop was close and hot, and the atmosphere seemed tainted with the smell of coffins. 店堂里相当闷热，空气仿佛被棺木的味儿污染了。 来自辞典例句
• Donate some coffins to the temple, equal to the number of deaths. 到寺庙里，捐赠棺材盒给这些死者吧。 来自电影对白

15 shrine   

n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣

参考例句：

• The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
• They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。

16 shrines   

圣地，圣坛，神圣场所( shrine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• All three structures dated to the third century and were tentatively identified as shrines. 这3座建筑都建于3 世纪，并且初步鉴定为神庙。
• Their palaces and their shrines are tombs. 它们的宫殿和神殿成了墓穴。