2006年VOA标准英语-New Rebel Attack on Sri Lankan Military He

By Anjana Pasricha
New Delhi
07 January 2006

In Sri Lanka, at least 13 sailors have been killed in an attack on a naval¹ vessel² by suspected ethnic³ Tamil rebels. 

Soldiers of Sri Lankan Air Force stand guard at a checkpoint in Colombo, Saturday  
  
Sri Lankan officials say rebels rammed⁴ an explosive filled fishing boat into a naval patrol boat soon after it left Trincomalee harbor in the northeast of the country on Saturday.

Most of the sailors on board were killed, and only two were rescued. A navy spokesman says the military suspects that the rebels - known as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or the Tamil Tigers - mounted a suicide attack.

The Tamil Tigers carried out dozens of similar attacks before a ceasefire came into effect four years ago.

That ceasefire has become increasingly shaky since December, when a wave of bloody⁵ attacks - widely believed to have been carried out by the rebels - began. Several dozen members of the military have been killed, including those in the Saturday incident.

The new round of violence erupted soon after the election of hard-line president Mahinda Rajapakse, who announced that he could not agree to the rebels' core demand - an autonomous⁶ homeland for the minority Tamil community in the north and the east of the country.

However, the government has also says it does not want a resumption of war, and has been lobbying the international community for help in restarting stalled peace negotiations⁷.

On Friday, Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera said in Washington that "war is not an option."

But Jehan Perera, who heads the Colombo-based National Peace Council, says the government is not doing enough to explore political solutions with the rebels, also known by their initials, the LTTE.

"The government itself has not apparently⁸ made up its mind about what it should do, what it should offer," he said. "After all, this is a government that won the last election on a very nationalist platform. The government has been toning down its nationalism, but still not enough to go to the extent of offering the LTTE positive incentives⁹."

The international community has stepped up efforts to avert¹⁰ a slide back to conflict, following warnings by Norwegian truce¹¹ monitors that "war may not be far away."

In recent weeks, both sides have said they are willing to talk, but have been unable to agree on a venue¹².

A Norwegian peace envoy¹³ is due to arrive in Colombo later this month in an attempt to break the deadlock¹⁴ over where talks should be held. U.S. officials say Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns also plans to visit Colombo to encourage negotiations between the two sides.

But in Sri Lanka, the news of the latest attack raised fears that the four-year cease-fire may be collapsing¹⁵. A decade ago, a similar attack triggered full-scale hostilities¹⁶, ending a brief truce.

The Tamil Tigers launched their struggle for an independent homeland for the minority Tamil community in 1983, complaining of discrimination by the majority Sinhalese.

1 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

2 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

3 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

4 rammed   

v.夯实（土等）( ram的过去式和过去分词 )；猛撞；猛压；反复灌输

参考例句：

• Two passengers were injured when their taxi was rammed from behind by a bus. 公共汽车从后面撞来，出租车上的两位乘客受了伤。
• I rammed down the earth around the newly-planted tree. 我将新栽的树周围的土捣硬。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

6 autonomous   

adj.自治的；独立的

参考例句：

• They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province.他们自豪地宣布成为新自治省的一部分。
• This is a matter that comes within the jurisdiction of the autonomous region.这件事是属于自治区权限以内的事务。

7 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

8 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

9 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

10 avert   

v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等)

参考例句：

• He managed to avert suspicion.他设法避嫌。
• I would do what I could to avert it.我会尽力去避免发生这种情况。

11 truce   

n.休战，(争执，烦恼等的)缓和；v.以停战结束

参考例句：

• The hot weather gave the old man a truce from rheumatism.热天使这位老人暂时免受风湿病之苦。
• She had thought of flying out to breathe the fresh air in an interval of truce.她想跑出去呼吸一下休战期间的新鲜空气。

12 venue   

n.犯罪地点，审判地，管辖地，发生地点，集合地点

参考例句：

• The hall provided a venue for weddings and other functions.大厅给婚礼和其他社会活动提供了场所。
• The chosen venue caused great controversy among the people.人们就审判地点的问题产生了极大的争议。

13 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

14 deadlock   

n.僵局，僵持

参考例句：

• The negotiations reached a deadlock after two hours.两小时后，谈判陷入了僵局。
• The employers and strikers are at a deadlock over the wage.雇主和罢工者在工资问题上相持不下。

15 collapsing   

压扁[平]，毁坏，断裂

参考例句：

• Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
• The rocks were folded by collapsing into the center of the trough. 岩石由于坍陷进入凹槽的中心而发生褶皱。

16 hostilities   

n.战争；敌意(hostility的复数)；敌对状态；战事

参考例句：

• Mexico called for an immediate cessation of hostilities. 墨西哥要求立即停止敌对行动。
• All the old hostilities resurfaced when they met again. 他们再次碰面时，过去的种种敌意又都冒了出来。