2007年VOA标准英语-US Says al-Qaida Kidnapper Killed

By Barry Newhouse
Irbil
03 May 2007

The U.S. military says it has killed a senior leader of al-Qaida in Iraq who was involved in the kidnappings of several Westerners. Iraqi officials also have announced two other high-profile al-Qaida deaths in recent days, but VOA's Barry Newhouse reports from northern Iraq that U.S. officials say those deaths are unconfirmed and may have been the result of miscommunication.

Picture displayed at a press conference in Baghdad given by US Major General William Caldwell shows Muharib Abdul Latif al-Jubouri, 03 May 2007

U.S. military spokesman Major General William Caldwell says al-Qaida in Iraq's information minister, Muharib Abdul Latif al-Jubouri, was killed May first during a U.S.-led operation in Taji, north of Baghdad.

"We took that body off the target objective. Through DNA¹ testing which didn't get finished until yesterday, we were able to positively² identify that is in fact who we killed," he said. 

While U.S. officials were waiting to confirm Jubori's death, Iraqi officials reported on May first that al-Qaida in Iraq's leader Abu Ayyub al-Masri was killed, also in Taji. Iraqi officials have produced no evidence to back up the claim.

U.S. officials say Jubori was involved in several high-profile kidnappings in recent years, including American reporter Jill Carroll and American peace activist³ Tom Fox. Fox was found dead and Carroll was released in March 2006.

The U.S. military released Jubori's body on Wednesday to a member of his family in Baghdad, but the military says Iraqi forces then detained the family member and the body at a Baghdad checkpoint.

Interior Ministry⁴ spokesman Brigadier General Abdul Kareem Khalaf told Iraqi television that Iraqi forces intercepted⁵ a family member transporting the body of the leader of a terrorist group linked to al-Qaida in Iraq.

General Khalaf says Iraqi forces identified the body as Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the leader of the insurgent⁶ group The Islamic State of Iraq.

U.S. and Iraqi officials have been unable to explain the discrepancy⁷ in the reported deaths. General Caldwell said U.S. officials have no information about an individual known as Baghdadi.

"There's a lot of discussion of a person called al Baghdadi, but we're not really sure who that person might be," he added.

Major General William Caldwell

Despite the confusion, General Caldwell said the fact that Iraqi forces stopped and investigated a suspicious car is evidence of improvement in Baghdad's security operation.

"There's a lot of people within this city that are moved around that have been deceased. That the Iraqi security forces see in different vehicles," he continued. "But they were able to identify this one, so that is a good thing that that happened."

The general said that, in April, between 1,500 and 2,000 innocent civilians⁸ were killed or wounded by car bombs and suicide vests. The general said that, during the same period, coalition⁹ and Iraqi forces launched 139 raids on al-Qaida targets, killing¹⁰ 87 suspected terrorists and detaining 465 others.

1 DNA   

(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸

参考例句：

• DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。

2 positively   

adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实

参考例句：

• She was positively glowing with happiness.她满脸幸福。
• The weather was positively poisonous.这天气着实讨厌。

3 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

4 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

5 intercepted   

拦截( intercept的过去式和过去分词 )； 截住； 截击； 拦阻

参考例句：

• Reporters intercepted him as he tried to leave the hotel. 他正要离开旅馆，记者们把他拦截住了。
• Reporters intercepted him as he tried to leave by the rear entrance. 他想从后门溜走，记者把他截住了。

6 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

7 discrepancy   

n.不同；不符；差异；矛盾

参考例句：

• The discrepancy in their ages seemed not to matter.他们之间年龄的差异似乎没有多大关系。
• There was a discrepancy in the two reports of the accident.关于那次事故的两则报道有不一致之处。

8 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

9 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

10 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。