2007年VOA标准英语-Fighting Rages in Lebanon for Third Day

By Challiss McDonough
Cairo
22 May 2007

Fighting between the Lebanese army and an Islamic extremist group raged on for a third day in a Palestinian refugee camp in north Lebanon.  At least 66 people are reported killed since the battles began Sunday, but some estimates put the death toll¹ much higher.  A brief ceasefire allowed aid agencies to get assistance to camp residents for the first time, but a U.N. aid worker was wounded when the convoy² came under fire. Later, thousands of civilians³ started fleeing camp, taking advantage of a lull⁵ in the fighting late Tuesday. VOA correspondent Challiss McDonough has details from our Middle East bureau in Cairo.

Lebanese special brigades patrol a street inside the Palestinian refugee camp of Nahr al-Bared in north Lebanon, 22 May 2007

On the third day of heavy fighting, militants⁶ from the Fatah al-Islam group announced a unilateral ceasefire at mid-afternoon.  Some residents of the Nahr al-Bared camp, who had been anxiously sheltering in their homes, seized the opportunity to flee.  Aid groups scrambled⁷ to try to get assistance into the Palestinian refugee camp.  But, in less than an hour, the truce⁸ fell apart and the gunfire and shelling started again.

A United Nations official said a U.N. convoy carrying food and medicine came under fire.  A number of U.N. aid workers were stranded⁹ inside the camp as the trucks retreated.

There was more fighting in the port city of Tripoli, near the refugee camp, where one of the Fatah al-Islam militants blew himself up during a raid by security forces.  There were no casualties other than the bomber¹⁰.

A spokeswoman for the International Committee of the Red Cross, Virginia de la Guardia, said she is concerned about the civilians who remain trapped in the camp.

"So, we are very concerned about the situation of the people who are inside, lacking of water, lacking of medicines, lacking of electricity," she said.  "So, our main concern, what we are really asking, is that they facilitate access to the humanitarian¹¹ organizations to bring relief."

There are some 30,000 people who live in the Nahr al-Bared camp, which is outside Tripoli.  The army has so far not entered the camp itself.  Palestinian refugee camps have been off-limits to Lebanese authorities since 1969 under an international agreement.

Human rights groups have criticized the Lebanese army for using artillery¹² to target such a heavily populated area.  They say it is nearly impossible to avoid civilian⁴ casualties.

Scores of Palestinian refugees in two other camps marched through the streets and burned tires in protest against the army's shelling of Nahr al-Bared.  That fueled concerns that the violence could spread to other parts of the country.

Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, a member of the parliament's majority coalition¹³, urged the country's divided politicians to unite in support of the army, despite their political differences.  He also called on mainstream¹⁴ Palestinian factions¹⁵ to take action against Fatah al-Islam.

"It is the responsibility of the state, the army and the responsibility of the Palestinian organizations to stop sheltering [this group], either politically or physically," he said.  "Hamas and Fatah should hand over this criminal gang that has no relationship with the Palestinian cause."

All mainstream Palestinian groups have disavowed Fatah al-Islam, saying they want nothing to do with the group's al-Qaida-inspired ideology¹⁶.  The Lebanese government has accused Fatah al-Islam of loyalty¹⁷ to Syria. But Syrian officials have strongly denied any ties to the group, and say its leader was imprisoned¹⁸ in Damascus over his extremist views.

In Washington, White House spokesman Tony Snow read a statement of support for the Lebanese government as it "faces down the threat of terrorism and political violence."

Druze leader Jumblatt also told reporters he expects more bombings in Beirut, where two large bombs have exploded since Sunday, one in a Christian¹⁹ neighborhood and the other in an upscale shopping district.  Fatah al-Islam leaders have denied responsibility for those attacks.

1 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

2 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

3 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。

4 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。

5 lull   

v.使安静，使入睡，缓和，哄骗；n.暂停，间歇

参考例句：

• The drug put Simpson in a lull for thirty minutes.药物使辛普森安静了30分钟。
• Ground fighting flared up again after a two-week lull.经过两个星期的平静之后，地面战又突然爆发了。

6 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

7 scrambled   

v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Each scrambled for the football at the football ground. 足球场上你争我夺。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He scrambled awkwardly to his feet. 他笨拙地爬起身来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 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。

9 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

10 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

11 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

12 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

13 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。

14 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

15 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

16 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

17 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

18 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

19 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。