2006年VOA标准英语-Hezbollah Chief Vows Lebanon Protests Will Cont

By Challiss McDonough
Beirut
07 December 2006

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah addresses supporters on giant screen in downtown Beirut 7 Dec 06

The leader of Hezbollah has vowed¹ that protests in central Beirut will continue until the government changes to give the opposition² a greater voice. He urged his followers³ to come back into the streets to increase the pressure on the prime minister. But Hassan Nasrallah also left open the possibility that negotiations⁴ could end the crisis, and he ruled out the use of force. VOA Correspondent Challiss McDonough has more from Beirut.

Speaking to the rapturous crowd of protesters from an undisclosed location via two giant video screens, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah vowed that the opposition protesters will not leave the streets of central Beirut until they have achieved their goal - a national unity⁵ government that gives the opposition one-third of the votes, and a veto over government decisions.

But he also said Hezbollah would never use its weapons to fight other Lebanese. "We reject civil war. We reject sectarian strife⁶. Everyone loses in a civil war. We all lose," he said.

He repeatedly invoked⁷ the name of Ahmed Mahmoud, the opposition supporter who was shot to death during a clash between Sunnis and Shiites on Sunday. He said if a thousand protesters were killed, it would still not chase the protesters from the streets.

Earlier, still hold up in his office, Prime Minister Fouad Siniora had called for dialogue to find a way out of the crisis.

He said, we are sticking to our principles, and we are steadfast⁸, but at the same time we are calling for dialogue and will continue to reach out to them. This is not weakness, it is part of our belief in unity for all Lebanese.

Nasrallah appeared to answer the prime minister's call with his own offer to negotiate. "The doors of dialogue are open." But he added, "We do not need to waste time in returning to the negotiating table. We will not leave the streets and go to the negotiating table to be deceived again."

In a fiery⁹ hour-long speech, Nasrallah shouted angrily into the microphone, waving his hands in the air and shaking his finger at the camera as he delivered broadside after broadside aimed at the Lebanese government and its American allies.

Every time he mentioned the Lebanese prime minister, he drew loud boos from the crowd. The boos and jeers¹⁰ grew even louder when he lambasted U.S. President George Bush, Vice¹¹ President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and outgoing U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, all of whom he mentioned by name.

Nasrallah called on his followers to turn out for an even more massive protest on Sunday. But the opposition has already started working on other strategies to bring down the government, since the street protests do not appear to be working.

Political analyst¹² Amal Saad-Ghorayeb, a visiting fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and noted¹³ expert on Hezbollah said "Given that there are other venues¹⁴ open to the opposition, such as perhaps workers strikes, resignations from public posts, which could eventually lead to resignations from the parliament. So there are sort of moderate measures and extreme measures which have yet to be taken, and in that sense, we've got to see these popular protests as the backdrop against which more drastic moves will be taken in the short to medium term."

The protests have been going on since last Friday, when an estimated 800,000 people took to the streets in support of the opposition's call for a new unity government. The ongoing¹⁵ demonstrations¹⁶ have dwindled¹⁷ to a few thousand who remain camped in tents outside the prime minister's office, paralyzing downtown Beirut, but their numbers swell¹⁸ for a few hours every night as other opposition supporters flock back to the protest site for speeches in the evenings.

1 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

2 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。

3 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

4 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。

5 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

6 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

7 invoked   

v.援引( invoke的过去式和过去分词 )；行使（权利等）；祈求救助；恳求

参考例句：

• It is unlikely that libel laws will be invoked. 不大可能诉诸诽谤法。
• She had invoked the law in her own defence. 她援引法律为自己辩护。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 steadfast   

adj.固定的，不变的，不动摇的；忠实的；坚贞不移的

参考例句：

• Her steadfast belief never left her for one moment.她坚定的信仰从未动摇过。
• He succeeded in his studies by dint of steadfast application.由于坚持不懈的努力他获得了学业上的成功。

9 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

10 jeers   

n.操纵帆桁下部（使其上下的）索具；嘲讽( jeer的名词复数 )v.嘲笑( jeer的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They shouted jeers at him. 他们大声地嘲讽他。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The jeers from the crowd caused the speaker to leave the platform. 群众的哄笑使讲演者离开讲台。 来自辞典例句

11 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

12 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

13 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

14 venues   

n.聚集地点( venue的名词复数 )；会场；（尤指）体育比赛场所；犯罪地点

参考例句：

• The band will be playing at 20 different venues on their UK tour. 这个乐队在英国巡回演出期间将在20个不同的地点演出。
• Farmers market corner, 800 meters long, 60 meters wide livestock trading venues. 农牧市场东北角，有长800米，宽60米的牲畜交易场地。 来自互联网

15 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

16 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

17 dwindled   

v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Support for the party has dwindled away to nothing. 支持这个党派的人渐渐化为乌有。
• His wealth dwindled to nothingness. 他的钱财化为乌有。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 swell   

vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强

参考例句：

• The waves had taken on a deep swell.海浪汹涌。
• His injured wrist began to swell.他那受伤的手腕开始肿了。