VOA标准英语2008年-Multinational Force Transfers 10th Province to

The U.S.-led Multinational¹ Force turned over security responsibility for Qadisiyah province, also known as Diwaniyah, to Iraq on Wednesday. With that transfer, Iraq now has control over 10 of its 18 provinces. Iraq's national security advisor² says he hopes the government will regain³ control of the other provinces by year's end. VOA's Suzanne Presto⁴ reports from the northern city of Irbil.
　
Hamed al-Khudari (L), governor of Diwaniyah province, signs documents with US Army Lt General Lloyd Austin (R), during handover ceremony, 16 Jul 2008

In a nationally televised ceremony on Wednesday, Iraq assumed responsibility for Qadisiyah province. That transfer tipped the scales, and now more than half of Iraq's provinces are back under government control.

Iraq's National Security Advisor Muaffak al-Rubaie spoke⁵ at the handover ceremony in Qadisiyah's provincial⁶ capital, Diwaniyah. He told the gathered crowd that he hoped Iraq would assume control of its remaining eight provinces by the end of this year.

The U.S.-led Multinational Force has already transferred security responsibility for the provinces of Maysan, Muthanna, Basra, Dhi Qar, Najaf and Karbala. And the Kurdistan Regional Government oversees⁷ the three northern provinces of Dohuk, Sulaimaniyah and Irbil.

Deputy Parliament Speaker Sheikh Khalid al-Attiya says Iraqi forces have proven that they are ready to assume control of Qadisiyah.

He said his confidence in the military's readiness stems from recent Iraqi-led security operations that have been successful, such as the offensive to crack down on militants⁸ in Maysan province.

According to the Multinational Force, a committee assesses whether a province is stable enough to be transferred to Iraqi authority. The committee is comprised of Iraqi government officials, U.S. and British embassy representatives, and members of the Multinational Force. Another committee, chaired by Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, reviews the recommendations and makes the final determination.

It was two years ago this week that the first province was transferred back to Iraqi control.

 

1 multinational   

adj.多国的，多种国籍的；n.多国籍公司，跨国公司

参考例句：

• The firm was taken over by a multinational consulting firm.这家公司被一个跨国咨询公司收购。
• He analyzed the relationship between multinational corporations and under-developed countries.他分析了跨国公司和不发达国家之间的关系。

2 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

3 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

4 presto   

adv.急速地；n.急板乐段；adj.急板的

参考例句：

• With something so important,you can't just wave a wand and presto!在这么重大的问题上，你想挥动一下指挥棒，转眼就变过来,办不到！
• I just turned the piece of wire in the lock and hey presto,the door opened.我把金属丝伸到锁孔里一拧，嘿，那门就开了。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

7 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

8 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。