VOA标准英语2013--Morsi Overthrow Divides Mideast, Deepens Turmoil

 

Morsi Overthrow¹ Divides Mideast, Deepens Turmoil²

With Egypt's ouster of the Islamist president in the limelight, Syria's brutal³ civil war has been out of the headlines in recent days.

But President Bashar al-Assad is using Egypt's crisis as propaganda, said Michael Clarke, director of the Royal United Services Institute in London.

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"President Assad, of all the rulers in the Middle East, is saying 'Look, this proves it,'" he said. "I'm a secularist⁴ ruler. Let the religious nutcases in - like these people who are actually controlling the areas of Homs and Aleppo - and this is what you'll get."

But that argument may backfire on President Assad, argued Nadim Shehadi of the policy analysis institute, Chatham House.

"For him this is also a double-edged sword because if Islamists are on the wane⁵, then his main message of him being the only alternative will also be weakened," he said.

In Libya, uprisings swept Moammar Gadhafi from power in 2011. Now the Muslim Brotherhood⁶'s Justice and Construction Party has become the most powerful bloc⁷ in parliament. But Libya's Prime Minister Ali Zeidan, an independent, reacted with caution to the events in Cairo.

"Political choices are up to the Egyptian people, and we shall support whatever they will choose," he said.

Libya continues to battle armed militias⁸ which threaten to derail the path to peaceful democracy, said Michael Clarke of RUSI.

"This wheel will keep on turning," he said. "It's taking its second revolution in Egypt. It's going through a second revolution - a revolution of the wheel - in Libya. And it will keep on happening in other parts of the Middle East."

Tunisia's ruling Ennahda party is an ally of the Muslim Brotherhood. But party officials say Tunisia's consensual approach of using cross-party committees to draw up the constitution has won support.

Turkey has been among the most vocal⁹ critics of the Egyptian military. Analysts¹⁰ say its ruling AK party has lost an Islamist ally in Morsi. Ankara's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was unequivocal, saying, "President Morsi, who took the helm after democratic elections, was ousted¹¹ in a coup¹² by the Egyptian army."

In contrast, Arab powers including Saudi Arabia and Jordan have welcomed events in Cairo, said Michael Clarke of RUSI.

"To see Morsi fail, to see him brought down, is barely disguised delight for them. It's a bit of a humiliation¹³ for Qatar who has supported the Morsi government and put quite a lot of money into it," he said.

In the midst of these regional power struggles, Israel is watching events in Egypt cautiously, said Nadim Shehadi of Chatham House.

"You have the military coming to power, with the military being masters at exploiting the Arab-Israeli conflict to maintain themselves in power," he said. "So they should be wary¹⁴ of that too."

Analysts warn there is a growing fear that unilateral action by Israel against any perceived threat could ignite this volatile¹⁵ region. 

1 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

2 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

3 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

4 secularist   

n.现世主义者，世俗主义者；宗教与教育分离论者

参考例句：

5 wane   

n.衰微，亏缺，变弱；v.变小，亏缺，呈下弦

参考例句：

• The moon is on the wane.月亮渐亏。
• Her enthusiasm for him was beginning to wane.她对他的热情在开始减退。

6 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。

7 bloc   

n.集团；联盟

参考例句：

• A solid bloc of union members support the decision.工会会员团结起来支持该决定。
• There have been growing tensions within the trading bloc.贸易同盟国的关系越来越紧张。

8 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

9 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

10 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

11 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

12 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

13 humiliation   

n.羞辱

参考例句：

• He suffered the humiliation of being forced to ask for his cards.他蒙受了被迫要求辞职的羞辱。
• He will wish to revenge his humiliation in last Season's Final.他会为在上个季度的决赛中所受的耻辱而报复的。

14 wary   

adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的

参考例句：

• He is wary of telling secrets to others.他谨防向他人泄露秘密。
• Paula frowned,suddenly wary.宝拉皱了皱眉头，突然警惕起来。

15 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。