ECOWAS Lifts Sanctions Against Mali

 　　Mali's President Amadou Toumani Toure has officially resigned weeks after being toppled in a military coup¹ that came just months before his term was to end.

　　A mediator² for ECOWAS, the Economic Community of West African States, said he received Mr. Toure's resignation letter Sunday.

　　An ECOWAS official tells VOA that the group has lifted harsh economic sanctions against Mali, saying it is satisfied the military is committed to restoring constitutional rule.

　　But the official says it would be dangerous for the military to renege on its agreement to hold democratic elections. He says he cannot see how an ECOWAS member can live in isolation³ among its neighbors.

　　Under a deal reached Friday, former Malian speaker of parliament Dioncounda Traore will serve as president with a transitional government until elections are held.

　　ECOWAS pledged to help Mali fight the Tuareg rebels who have seized much of the country's north and proclaimed an independent state there following the military coup.

　　The coup leaders justified⁴ their takeover by denouncing what they said was the former government's ineffectual campaign to suppress the Tuareg rebellion.

　　The U.S. State Department Sunday evacuated⁵ all Peace Corps⁶ volunteers and offered all non-essential diplomatic personnel flights out of the country.

　　U.S. officials say the situation in Mali remains⁷ fluid and unpredictable. It also says there is a threat of kidnappings and attacks against Westerners in the north.

　　Mali's neighbors all criticized both the military coup and the new "Azawad" state declared by the northern rebels, who got help from the radical⁸ Islamist group Ansar Dine.

　　The self-styled National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) controls the cities of Timbuktu, Gao and other areas in the north. It declared its independence Friday and said its military campaign is over. The heavily armed Tuaregs, formerly⁹ based in Moammar Gadhafi's Libya, began fighting in northern Mali in January.

1 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。

2 mediator   

n.调解人，中介人

参考例句：

• He always takes the role of a mediator in any dispute.他总是在争论中充当调停人的角色。
• He will appear in the role of mediator.他将出演调停者。

3 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

4 justified   

a.正当的，有理的

参考例句：

• She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
• The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

5 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

6 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

7 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。

8 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

9 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。