2006年VOA标准英语-US Says Hezbollah Still Strong After War With I

By Margaret Besheer
Washington
28 September 2006

U.S. counterterrorism officials say Lebanon-based Hezbollah terrorists remain a threat to the survival of Lebanon's government, Israel's security, and regional stability following its month-long war with Israel. The officials told Congress Thursday that Hezbollah has an increasing global reach and is capable of harming U.S. and other western interests around the world. 

-----

		Hassan Nasrallah

The 34-day war between Hezbollah and Israel was triggered when Hezbollah fighters crossed into Israel, kidnapping two Israeli soldiers and killing¹ eight others.

Israel responded with a military offensive intended to destroy Hezbollah's rockets, weaken its fighters and diminish its threat to Israel's security. But just last week, Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, told a rally of hundreds of thousands of supporters in Beirut, that his organization was as strong as ever and still had an arsenal² of 20,000 rockets capable of striking Israel.

Frank Urbancic is a counterterrorism official at the U.S. State Department. He says Hezbollah is a capable terrorist organization with a growing reach.

"We could think of it perhaps as almost an octopus³, with its head in southern Lebanon and tentacles⁴ moving around the world," said Frank Urbancic.

In the Middle East, Urbancic says Hezbollah is interested in expanding its links to other terrorist organizations and has so far succeeded in the Palestinian territories.

"Hezbollah has supported terrorist activities in the Palestinian territories since at least 2000, by providing financial, training and logistical support to Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other Palestinian terrorist groups," he said.

Hezbollah's growing reach, the officials say, is due in large part to the support it receives from its biggest backers - Iran and Syria - who provide Hezbollah with money, arms and training.

Counterterrorism officials are also concerned that Hezbollah is looking to expand into Central and South America, where the group's supporters and sympathizers are involved in drugs and arms trafficking, money laundering⁵ and other criminal activities.

Hezbollah was founded in 1982 as a response to Israel's invasion and occupation of Lebanon. Prior to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States Hezbollah was responsible for more American deaths than any other terrorist group.

The officials testified that they do not think Hezbollah is planning any terrorist operations in the United States right now, but they warn that the group operates in the United States to raise money to support its terrorist activities.

John Kavanagh is a counterterrorism official with the Federal Bureau of Investigation⁶:

"Within the United States, Hezbollah associates and sympathizers have engaged in a wide range of criminal activities to include money laundering, credit card fraud, immigration fraud, food stamp fraud, bank fraud and narcotics⁷ trafficking," said John Kavanagh.

The officials warn that Hezbollah remains⁸ a highly organized and well-trained organization with funding from many sources. They say it is capable of acting⁹ against U.S. interests on several fronts and on several continents.

The officials said close cooperation with U.S. allies is the most effective way to counter the Hezbollah threat.

1 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

2 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

3 octopus   

n.章鱼

参考例句：

• He experienced nausea after eating octopus.吃了章鱼后他感到恶心。
• One octopus has eight tentacles.一条章鱼有八根触角。

4 tentacles   

n.触手( tentacle的名词复数 )；触角；触须；触毛

参考例句：

• Tentacles of fear closed around her body. 恐惧的阴影笼罩着她。
• Many molluscs have tentacles. 很多软体动物有触角。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 laundering   

n.洗涤（衣等），洗烫（衣等）；洗（钱）v.洗（衣服等），洗烫（衣服等）( launder的现在分词 )；洗（黑钱）（把非法收入改头换面，变为貌似合法的收入）

参考例句：

• Separate the white clothes from the dark clothes before laundering. 洗衣前应当把浅色衣服和深色衣服分开。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was charged with laundering money. 他被指控洗钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

7 narcotics   

n.麻醉药( narcotic的名词复数 )；毒品；毒

参考例句：

• The use of narcotics by teenagers is a problem in many countries. 青少年服用麻醉药在许多国家中都是一个问题。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Police shook down the club, looking for narcotics. 警方彻底搜查了这个俱乐部，寻找麻醉品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 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。

9 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。