VOA标准英语2011--Syrian President Concedes 'Mistakes' in

Syrian President Concedes 'Mistakes' in Handling Protests

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said the authorities have made some mistakes in their handling of anti-government protests since mid-March.
Assad told a group of dignitaries that most of the blame lay with poorly trained members of the security services, according to government TV. But he said Syria had now "overcome the crisis" and it was coming to an end.
The admission comes as new reports of attacks on civilians² are taking place in a town near the border with Lebanon.
Video on a Facebook website showed scores of protesters chanting slogans against the government in Syria's third largest city of Homs Wednesday, heeding³ a call for a nationwide general strike. Other reports, however, said that shops were open, due to a heavy security presence in the city.
Witnesses in the capital Damascus say that the strike did not appear to have attracted much support in the more visible parts of the city. The French Press Agency reported some unrest in a lower-class neighborhood of Aleppo, along with a large demonstration⁴ in Ifrin, north of the city.
Overnight, a campus protest at Aleppo University was broken up by government militiamen and hundreds of students were arrested. It was the second straight night that Aleppo students came out to protest.
A Syrian opposition⁵ group on Facebook showed video of several hundred protesters chanting against the government in Damascus' Kurdish quarter of Rukn al Din¹, Tuesday.
Syria's Council of Ministers also met Wednesday to discuss reforms that have been promised by President Assad. Information Minister Adnan Hammoud described plans to reform the judiciary:
He says that the Council of Ministers decided⁶ at Wednesday's meeting to set up a committee to reform the judicial⁷ system and to devise a strategy to reform the judiciary at all levels, including re-organizing judicial bodies and increasing the number of judges.
Meanwhile, in Yemen the Gulf⁸ Cooperation Council, a six-nation group of oil-producing countries, proposed a deal, which aims to end months of unrest and stabilize⁹ the region. The parties were expected to sign the agreement Wednesday, officials said. However, given the number of times Saleh has backed out of resigning in recent weeks, some opposition leaders said they remained skeptical¹⁰. Protesters have been threatening to storm the presidential palace and other government buildings.

1 din   

n.喧闹声，嘈杂声

参考例句：

• The bustle and din gradually faded to silence as night advanced.随着夜越来越深，喧闹声逐渐沉寂。
• They tried to make themselves heard over the din of the crowd.他们力图让自己的声音盖过人群的喧闹声。

2 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

3 heeding   

v.听某人的劝告，听从( heed的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• This come of heeding people who say one thing and mean another! 有些人嘴里一回事，心里又是一回事，今天这个下场都是听信了这种人的话的结果。 来自辞典例句
• Her dwarfish spouse still smoked his cigar and drank his rum without heeding her. 她那矮老公还在吸他的雪茄，喝他的蔗酒，睬也不睬她。 来自辞典例句

4 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

5 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

8 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

9 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

10 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。