VOA常速英语2008年-UN, NATO Personnel Injured in Clashes With Serb

By Stefan Bos
Budapest
17 March 2008

Officials say three U.N. police officers and two NATO soldiers were wounded in an explosion in Kosovo as they stormed a courthouse occupied by Serb protesters who oppose the region's breakaway from Serbia. At least 20 demonstrators were also injured. Stefan Bos reports for VOA that the clashes in Kosovo's ethnically¹ divided town of Mitrovica are the worst since Kosovo's declaration of independence last month.

 

Local police said United Nations and NATO personnel were injured in an explosion when they recaptured the U.N. court building in the northern town of Mitrovica. It was occupied Friday by Serb protesters opposing Kosovo's independence. The blast was apparently² caused by a hand grenade activated³ during the takeover at the courthouse yard.

 

Attempts to recapture the premises⁴ began with NATO-led peacekeepers surrounding the building in armored vehicles. Witnesses said U.N. police backed by NATO troops then stormed the court, evicting⁵ Serb demonstrators.

 

About 500 mainly Ukrainian U.N. police were involved in the dawn raid, backed by hundreds of French troops. Thousands of stone-hurling Serbs were seen near the courthouse clashing with riot police backed up by NATO soldiers, who used tear gas and stun⁶ grenades to disperse⁷ the crowd.

 

Witnesses said rioters attacked several U.N. vehicles, breaking doors and freeing at least 10 of dozens of detainees from the raid. Smoke was seen billowing from at least two transport vehicles of the 16,000-member NATO peace force in Kosovo, KFOR. Medical officials claimed more than 100 people were treated for the effects of tear gas.

 

The clashes were the worst in Kosovo since its ethnic-Albanian dominated government declared independence from Serbia last month.

Former European Balkan envoy⁸ and current Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt warns that Mitrovica has become a flashpoint because it is an ethnically divided town separating Albanian and Serb communities.

 

"I was there in the bridge of Mitrovica. It is a bridge between two societies that have very few in common. To overcome that division of Kosovo. This will take a long time, we will need a lot of patience," he said.

 

Kosovo has been under U.N. control since 1999, when NATO bombings forced Serb forces to end their crackdown on the independence seeking, ethnic-Albanian majority.

 

Belgrade considers the territory as the cradle of Serbian religion and history. Serbia says Kosovo's declaration of independence was illegal under international law.

 

But most European Union nations and the United States have recognized Kosovo as an independent state.

1 ethnically   

adv.人种上，民族上

参考例句：

• Ethnically, the Yuan Empire comprised most of modern China's ethnic groups. 元朝的民族成分包括现今中国绝大多数民族。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• Russia is ethnically relatively homogeneous. 俄罗斯是个民族成分相对单一的国家。 来自辞典例句

2 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

3 activated   

adj. 激活的 动词activate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The canister is filled with activated charcoal.蒸气回收罐中充满了活性炭。

4 premises   

n.建筑物，房屋

参考例句：

• According to the rules,no alcohol can be consumed on the premises.按照规定，场内不准饮酒。
• All repairs are done on the premises and not put out.全部修缮都在家里进行，不用送到外面去做。

5 evicting   

v.（依法从房屋里或土地上）驱逐，赶出( evict的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Money spent on evicting sex offenders cannot be spent on treating them. 花在打击性侵犯者上的钱并不能花在治疗这一社会问题上。 来自互联网
• Money spent on evicting sex offenders cannot be spent on treating them. Does this matter? 钱被花费在驱逐性犯罪者而不是用做教育他们，这样做真的好么？ 来自互联网

6 stun   

vt.打昏，使昏迷，使震惊，使惊叹

参考例句：

• When they told me she had gone missing I was totally stunned.他们告诉我她不见了时，我当时完全惊呆了。
• Sam stood his ground and got a blow that stunned him.萨姆站在原地，被一下打昏了。

7 disperse   

vi.使分散；使消失；vt.分散；驱散

参考例句：

• The cattle were swinging their tails to disperse the flies.那些牛甩动着尾巴驱赶苍蝇。
• The children disperse for the holidays.孩子们放假了。

8 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。