2007年VOA标准英语-Pentagon Says Appropriate Force Used in Afghan

By Meredith Buel
Washington
16 May 2007

A U.S. military commander used an appropriate level of force and demonstrated sound judgment¹ during a battle last month in Afghanistan that Afghan officials say killed dozens of civilians².  That is the conclusion of a U.S. military investigation⁴ into the incident as we hear from VOA correspondent Meredith Buel in Washington.

An Afghan man, who was wounded during military operations of US and Afghan forces in Shindand district of Herat province, lies on a bed at a hospital in Herat province, 2 May 2007

Brigadier General Perry Wiggins told reporters at the Pentagon that a probe of the battle in which coalition⁵ forces say more than 130 Taleban insurgents⁶ were killed shows the U.S. commander, whose identity was not revealed, acted correctly.

"Coalition ground force was continuously engaged by intense enemy fire after entering an area of known Taleban activity," he said.  "On-scene commander used all necessary means available and took all appropriate actions necessary to defend his unit.  The on-scene commander demonstrated sound judgment." 

The fight occurred in late April in the Afghan town of Shindand, in western Herat province.

U.S. special operations forces called in air strikes that Afghan officials say killed about 50 civilians.

The fighting sparked large demonstration⁷ against the United States and the Afghan government in the region.

Following the incident, Afghan President Hamid Karzai said civilian³ deaths are unacceptable.

General Wiggins, however, says there is no mention of civilian casualties in the report he received after the investigation into the battle.

"Throughout the engagement all targets were positively⁸ identified as hostile and were under observation at the time of the engagement," he added.  "The on-scene commander used appropriate level of force to respond to the continuous enemy threat and protect his unit.  The on-scene commander's assessment⁹ of the enemy's situation was consistent with, and supported the reliable intelligence from varied¹⁰ sources."

Wiggins told reporters that U.S. commanders will not order strikes on areas where intelligence shows civilians could be hurt.

He blamed the Taleban for putting Afghan civilians in harm's way.

"The bulls-eye needs to be squarely placed on the Taleban with regards to these types of putting civilians at risk," he said.  "The enemy is operating in high concentrations of civilians.  They are doing it premeditatively.  They are putting [using] civilians as human shields.  That is very disturbing to all soldiers because we go to great lengths, as commanders and as soldiers on the ground, to protect the lives of civilians during the course of our operations."

Wiggins says the thought process commanders go through before ordering air strikes is very calculated and methodical.

1 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

2 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。

3 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

4 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。

5 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。

6 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

7 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

8 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。

9 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

10 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。