2006年VOA标准英语-Israel Warns of Hamas, Iran Links

By Sonja Pace
Jerusalem
20 April 2006
 

Ambassador Dan Gillerman   
  
Israel's ambassador to the United Nations this week linked the Hamas-led Palestinian government to Iran and to what he called a new "axis¹ of terror."  His words are a sign of stepped up rhetoric² and pressure on the Palestinian government, especially after last Monday's suicide bombing in Tel Aviv. 

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Hamas has been under pressure since its surprise election victory in late January.  Israel and the United States said from the outset they would not deal with an organization they have designated as a terrorist group. Europe soon followed suit, and all three cut off any direct flow of funds to the Palestinian Authority once Hamas took over.

The hope was that this external pressure would make Hamas moderate its position, renounce³ violence, recognize Israel and support the peace process.  But Hamas has remained defiant⁴, and even came out in defense⁵ of a young bomber⁶ linked with the militant⁷ group, Islamic Jihad, who blew himself up in central Tel Aviv.  Instead of condemning⁸ the bombing, Hamas leaders said it was an act of self defense caused by Israel's occupation.

That infuriated Israel, and its ambassador, Dan Gillerman, issued a warning to his colleagues at the United Nations.

"A dark cloud is looming⁹ over our region, and it is metastasizing as a result of the statements and actions by leaders of Iran, Syria and the newly-elected government of the Palestinian Authority," he said.

Ambassador Gillerman likened these statements and actions to, what he termed, "a declaration of war."  He warned that, if the world sits still and does nothing to root out this danger, it will threaten everyone.

"As this axis of evil and terror sows the seeds of the first world war of the 21st century," he added.

Senior Palestinian politician and peace negotiator, Saeb Erekat tells VOA, the Palestinians are not part of any axis.

Saeb Erekat   
  
"We [the Palestinians] are a people under occupation, under Israeli occupation," he said.  "We are a people, who are seeking to have peace with Israel, through negotiations¹⁰, and we hope that the Israelis will stop scoring points and finger-pointing, because we are not part of any axis in the region, whether Iran or anybody else."

Some critics say that Hamas leaders have brought increasing hardships and isolation¹¹ for Palestinians by sticking to their hard line, and visiting places like Iran, whose president has repeatedly called for Israel's destruction, and who continues to defy the West over his country's development of nuclear technology.

Hamas officials have been touring the region to seek funding to bail¹² their government out of the financial crisis, caused by the aid cuts from Europe and America. 

But, there is also something else at play, says Palestinian political analyst¹³ Mehdi Abdel Hadi, of the Passia research center in Jerusalem.

"They [Hamas] see this opportunity of awakening¹⁴ of the sleeping horses in the region - i.e., the Islamic movement in Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Iraq, and Palestine is no exception," he said.

Abdel Hadi sees in Ambassador Gillerman's words a reaction that goes back to the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001.

"I think it's part of the Islam-ophobia that goes back to the 11th of September. The idea has been to link the Iranians, the Muslim Brotherhood¹⁵ in Egypt, as well as Hamas in Palestine," he explained.

Abdel Hadi says it is a mistake to automatically link Islamic groups to terrorism. He says their rise is part of democratic change in the region, and he says their militancy¹⁶ could be seen as a transitional phase.

Not everyone agrees.  Critics say Islamic groups are using the ballot¹⁷ box to come to power, and to enforce their own vision on the rest of the people.

Many Palestinians fear that, as Hamas maintains its hard line, it risks financial, and possibly political collapse¹⁸, along with increasing chaos¹⁹. 

Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat says Hamas should recognize previous peace accords with Israel, and should agree to President Mahmoud Abbas's plan for future negotiations.  When asked if there is any indication of that happening, he says only, "I hope so."

1 axis   

n.轴，轴线，中心线；坐标轴，基准线

参考例句：

• The earth's axis is the line between the North and South Poles.地轴是南北极之间的线。
• The axis of a circle is its diameter.圆的轴线是其直径。

2 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

3 renounce   

v.放弃；拒绝承认，宣布与…断绝关系

参考例句：

• She decided to renounce the world and enter a convent.她决定弃绝尘世去当修女。
• It was painful for him to renounce his son.宣布与儿子脱离关系对他来说是很痛苦的。

4 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

5 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。

6 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

7 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

8 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

9 looming   

n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• The foothills were looming ahead through the haze. 丘陵地带透过薄雾朦胧地出现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Then they looked up. Looming above them was Mount Proteome. 接着他们往上看，在其上隐约看到的是蛋白质组山。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望

10 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

11 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

12 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

13 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

14 awakening   

n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的

参考例句：

• the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
• People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。

15 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

16 militancy   

n.warlike behavior or tendency

参考例句：

• Full of militancy and revolutionary ardour, the people of all nationalities in the country are working hard for the realization of the four modernizations. 全国各族人民意气风发， 斗志昂扬，为实现四个现代化而奋战。
• The seniority system is another factor that leads to union militancy. 排资论辈制度也是导致工会好斗争的另一因素。

17 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

18 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

19 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。