VOA标准英语2008年-UN Commemorates Five-Year Anniversary of Headqu

The U.N. secretary-general marked the fifth anniversary of the bombing of U.N. headquarters in Baghdad Tuesday. He was joined by survivors¹ of the attack at a ceremony honoring those who died and were injured while working for peace. VOA's U.N. correspondent Margaret Besheer has the story by Maha Saad.
　
A suicide attacker set off a truck bomb outside a Baghdad, Iraq, hotel housing the UN headquarters, 19 Aug 2003

On August 19, 2003, the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad was targeted in a massive suicide truck bombing. Twenty-two staffers were killed and more than 150 others were wounded. Among those killed was the top U.N. official in Iraq - Sergio Vieira de Mello.

The flag that once flew over the U.N. building in Baghdad hangs torn and damaged at U.N. headquarters in New York, where the commemoration took place. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon laid a wreath honoring those killed beneath a plaque² containing their names.

A U.N. official read the names of the 22 who lost their lives in the deadly attack. U.N. officials, staffers, the Iraqi ambassador and other representatives then observed a moment of silence.

A 15-minute-long classical music piece commissioned for the occasion entitled Song Without Borders was performed to honor the work of the United Nations and those committed to its mission of peacekeeping.
　
Ban Ki-moon speaks during a commemoration at UN headquarters in New York on fifth anniversary of bombing of UN office in Baghdad, 19 Aug 2008

Mr. Ban said the U.N. lost some of its best and bravest staff that day, but their legacy³ endures.

"Their children have grown without a parent, he said. Their other loved ones, many who are with us now, feel their absence every day. We, too, mourn them all. They were heroes. They faced danger to help people in need. They did their job in its largest and most noble sense."

After the attack, the U.N. scaled back its operations in Iraq, but its presence is growing once again. The organization has helped organize elections and draft a new constitution. Humanitarian⁴ agencies have helped those in need.

The secretary-general says security measures are constantly being reviewed worldwide, particularly in light of the bombing of U.N. offices in Algiers on December 11, 2007. Seventeen staffers were killed in that attack.

"We think every day about how to ensure that our staff can operate under the best possible conditions, he said. How we can provide state-of-the-art equipment, the strongest protection and the most extensive safety measures."

Since the beginning of U.N. peacekeeping operations in 1948, more than 700 personnel have lost their lives in the line of duty.

 

1 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

2 plaque   

n.饰板，匾，(医)血小板

参考例句：

• There is a commemorative plaque to the artist in the village hall.村公所里有一块纪念该艺术家的牌匾。
• Some Latin words were engraved on the plaque. 牌匾上刻着些拉丁文。

3 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

4 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。