中东—伊拉克频繁发生炸弹袭击事件

Series of Attacks Rock Iraq

伊拉克频繁发生炸弹袭击事件

 

A suicide bomber¹ blew himself up in front of the embassy of Slovakia, in another day of violence in the Iraqi capital. No one was killed. Separately, a suicide bomber failed in his attempt to assassinate² the head of the Iraqi police's elite³ Wolf Brigade, but killed at least three others. At least 20 more people were killed in other attacks.

 

Officials say a man driving a car packed with explosives blew himself up at a security barrier outside the Slovak Embassy. No one inside the compound was hurt, although police say one security guard was injured.

 

It is not clear why the embassy was targeted. Slovakia has about 100 troops in Iraq, mostly involved in removing landmines⁵.

 

Meanwhile, a suicide bomber dressed as a member of the Wolf Brigade, an elite police unit, blew himself up inside the brigade's headquarters. Officials say they believe the bomber wanted to assassinate Major General Mohammed Qureishi, the unit's founder⁶.

 

Consisting of several hundred commandos, the Wolf Brigade was formed to combat Iraq's insurgency⁷, much of which is driven by Sunni extremists.

 

The brigade has gained notoriety through its popular television program, on which General Qureishi is shown grilling⁸ confessed insurgents⁹ about their activities.

 

But the controversial group, primarily made up of Shi'ites, has been accused of targeting Iraq's Sunni minority, who dominated Iraq's government during the Saddam Hussein regime. General Qureishi denies any bias¹⁰.

 

The violence comes after a relative lull¹¹ in fighting in Baghdad, following Operation Lightning, a house-to-house sweep by Iraqi security forces to flush out insurgents hiding in the capital.

 

Speaking before Saturday's violence, Deputy Prime Minister Rowsch Shaways called Operation Lightning a success.

 

Rowsch Shaways: I do believe that the operation was successful. It was a harder step than what we have done before. Such operations are necessary. But at the same time, insurgencies are not so weak that they would be defeated in one or two weeks. This will need time. And this is a complex process.

 

Officials say they arrested more than 1,100 suspected insurgents during Operation Lightning, which they would like to extend beyond the capital.

 

Another 11 people died Saturday when gunmen opened fire on a minibus in the town of Diyara, about 50 kilometers south of Baghdad. The victims were construction workers, who were traveling to the capital through an area known as the Triangle of Death.

 

注释：

embassy [5embEsi] n. 大使馆

assassinate [E5sAsineit] vt. 暗杀

elite [ei5li:t] n. 精锐，中坚分子

explosive [iks5plEusiv] n. 炸药

landmine⁴ [5lAndmain] n. 地雷，投伞水雷

commando [kE5mAndEu] n. 突击队，突击队员

insurgency [in5sE:dVEnsi] n. 叛乱

Sunni [5suni:] n.（伊斯兰）逊尼派教徒

notoriety [7nEtE5raiEti] n. 恶名，声名狼藉

bias [5baiEs] n. 偏见

lull [lQl] n. 平静

complex [5kCmpleks] adj. 复杂的

minibus [5mini7bQs] n. 小型公共汽车，中巴

1 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

2 assassinate   

vt.暗杀，行刺，中伤

参考例句：

• The police exposed a criminal plot to assassinate the president.警方侦破了一个行刺总统的阴谋。
• A plot to assassinate the banker has been uncovered by the police.暗杀银行家的密谋被警方侦破了。

3 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

4 landmine   

n.地雷

参考例句：

• A landmine is a kind of weapon used in war.地雷是一种运用于战争的武器。
• The treaty bans the use,production and trade of landmine.那条约禁止使用生产和交易雷。

5 landmines   

潜在的冲突； 地雷，投伞水雷( landmine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The treaty bans the use production and trade of landmines. 该条约规定，禁止使用地雷相关产品及贸易。
• One of the weapon's of special concern was landmines. 在引起人们特别关注的武器中就有地雷。

6 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

7 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

8 grilling   

v.烧烤( grill的现在分词 )；拷问，盘问

参考例句：

• The minister faced a tough grilling at today's press conference. 部长在今天的记者招待会上受到了严厉的盘问。
• He's grilling out there in the midday sun. 他在外面让中午火辣辣的太阳炙烤着。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

10 bias   

n.偏见，偏心，偏袒；vt.使有偏见

参考例句：

• They are accusing the teacher of political bias in his marking.他们在指控那名教师打分数有政治偏见。
• He had a bias toward the plan.他对这项计划有偏见。

11 lull   

v.使安静，使入睡，缓和，哄骗；n.暂停，间歇

参考例句：

• The drug put Simpson in a lull for thirty minutes.药物使辛普森安静了30分钟。
• Ground fighting flared up again after a two-week lull.经过两个星期的平静之后，地面战又突然爆发了。