VOA常速英语2007年-US Military Continues Push to Quash al-Qaida in

By Deborah Block
Iskandariyah, Iraq
30 December 2007

U.S. military efforts to quash the al-Qaida in Iraq terrorist network are showing signs of success in some areas. But, the U.S. military says al-Qaida remains¹ a top concern. In an area south of Baghdad once known as the "Triangle of Death," U.S. forces have bolstered² their troop presence to rout³ al-Qaida. VOA's Deborah Block went with the U.S. Army's 2nd Battalion⁴, 502nd Infantry⁵ on a mission to find suspected al-Qaida members in an isolated⁶ village south of Baghdad.

It was almost daybreak when Black Hawk⁷ helicopters dropped off 80 soldiers and several Iraqi police in a farming village near the town of Iskandariyah.

U.S. military officials say they could not enter the village by road because the main roads were blown up by al-Qaida and subsequently flooded.

U.S. soldiers, accompanied by Iraqi police, begin canvassing⁸ homes, taking residents by surprise. A soldier instructs the others to begin checking houses in the village for suspected militants⁹.

"I'm going to need you guys to clear at least the first buildings, one, two and three," he said.

In each house, men are separated from women and children.

This was the first time in a year that U.S. troops had entered the village, where, they say, al-Qaida has been able to gain a foothold. The purpose of their mission was to rout out suspected al-Qaida members and win the trust of village leaders.

 

The leader of the U.S. mission, Captain Michael Penney, questions a man.

PENNEY: "When was the last time al-Qaida was here?"

Captain Penney explains that the military has received information that this man may have links to al-Qaida.

"Intelligence from people who live here, or know people who live here, and some people who have been attacked [by al-Qaida]," said Captain Penney.

The man denies any link to al-Qaida, but is taken into custody¹⁰.

At one house, a woman cries out that her son was kidnapped by al-Qaida, and she begs the soldiers for help.

The U.S. military push in this village comes about a month after a local sheikh told Iraqi police that suspected al-Qaida militants had raided the village in November, stealing money and weapons. The sheikh said three villagers were killed and five kidnapped. Those five are still missing.

During the mission, a total of four suspected al-Qaida militants are taken into custody.

One of the handcuffed men is accused of killing¹¹ the three villagers during the November raid.

In this area, once known as the "Triangle of Death," U.S. military officials say, local sheikhs and former members of the Iraqi military who have had enough of al-Qaida have begun cooperating with U.S. forces.

On this day, village leaders speak with some of the soldiers in a Muslim prayer room about ways to stop intimidation¹² by al-Qaida.

Lieutenant¹³ William Kuebler says the soldiers told the villagers that the U.S. military will take measures to help secure the area.

"Trying to explain what we plan to do in the future - fix roads, so we can have more of a presence out here," said Lieutenant Kuebler.

There is no health clinic in the village, and Army medic Specialist Martin Reynolds helps an Iraqi villager who was recently wounded.

"He was injured in a gunfight with al-Qaida," said Reynolds. "He had been shot through both legs. His wounds had become infected, so we cleaned them up, gave him some more different types of bandages, so he could keep his wounds clean and the infection under control."

Captain Penney says there are plans to go back to the village soon to continue searches for al-Qaida militants and to begin development projects U.S. military officials say those projects can help solidify¹⁴ support and cooperation from the local population.

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 bolstered   

v.支持( bolster的过去式和过去分词 )；支撑；给予必要的支持；援助

参考例句：

• He bolstered his plea with new evidence. 他举出新的证据来支持他的抗辩。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The data must be bolstered by inferences and indirect estimates of varying degrees of reliability. 这些资料必须借助于推理及可靠程度不同的间接估计。 来自辞典例句

3 rout   

n.溃退，溃败；v.击溃，打垮

参考例句：

• The enemy was put to rout all along the line.敌人已全线崩溃。
• The people's army put all to rout wherever they went.人民军队所向披靡。

4 battalion   

n.营；部队；大队(的人)

参考例句：

• The town was garrisoned by a battalion.该镇由一营士兵驻守。
• At the end of the drill parade,the battalion fell out.操练之后，队伍解散了。

5 infantry   

n.[总称]步兵(部队)

参考例句：

• The infantry were equipped with flame throwers.步兵都装备有喷火器。
• We have less infantry than the enemy.我们的步兵比敌人少。

6 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

7 hawk   

n.鹰，骗子；鹰派成员

参考例句：

• The hawk swooped down on the rabbit and killed it.鹰猛地朝兔子扑下来,并把它杀死。
• The hawk snatched the chicken and flew away.老鹰叼了小鸡就飞走了。

8 canvassing   

v.（在政治方面）游说( canvass的现在分词 )；调查（如选举前选民的）意见；为讨论而提出（意见等）；详细检查

参考例句：

• He spent the whole month canvassing for votes. 他花了整整一个月四处游说拉选票。
• I'm canvassing for the Conservative Party. 我在为保守党拉选票。 来自辞典例句

9 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

10 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

11 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

12 intimidation   

n.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• The Opposition alleged voter intimidation by the army.反对党声称投票者受到军方的恐吓。
• The gang silenced witnesses by intimidation.恶帮用恐吓的手段使得证人不敢说话。

13 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

14 solidify   

v.(使)凝固，(使)固化，(使)团结

参考例句：

• Opinion on this question began to solidify.对这个问题的意见开始具体化了。
• Water will solidify into ice if you freeze it.水冷冻会结冰。