VOA标准英语2009-Afghan President Reaches out to Taliban on E

Mr. Karzai says he is once again calling on his Afghan brothers - the Taliban and other Islamist militants² groups - to come back to their homeland to work toward peace, stability and prosperity.

Sean Maroney | Islamabad 27 November 2009

In this handout³ photograph provided by the Afghan Presidential Palace, President Hamid Karzai gives a press conference on Eid al-Adha in Kabul, 27 Nov 2009

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has repeated his call to the Taliban and other extremist groups to lay down their weapons and help rebuild Afghanistan.  Mr. Karzai made his appeal for peace in a speech Friday, marking the first day of the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai's appeal for reconciliation⁴ echoed elements of his inaugural⁵ address last week.

Mr. Karzai says he is once again calling on his Afghan brothers - the Taliban and other Islamist militants groups - to come back to their homeland to work toward peace, stability and prosperity.

But hours after Mr. Karzai's speech Friday, the governor of Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province survived an assassination⁶ attempt when a bomb targeting his convoy⁷ exploded as he headed to prayers for the Eid holiday.

No one immediately claimed responsibility, but Kandahar province is a stronghold for the Afghan Taliban.

President Karzai's appeal for peace also comes two days after a statement attributed to Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar appeared on a Taliban Web site.

The statement said the reclusive militant¹ leader will never agree to talks that prolong the presence of foreign troops in Afghanistan.  Mullah Omar has maintained a policy that rejects any negotiations⁸ before the international forces leave.

He has been in hiding since the U.S.-led invasion in 2001.

President Karzai says his efforts at reconciliation will not be deterred⁹ by the Taliban leader's defiance¹⁰.

Mr. Karzai says he will continue to reach out to militants and that he hopes Omar and other Taliban recognize the necessity of reconciliation.

The Afghan president also reiterated¹¹ his call to his political rivals, including former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, to help his government rebuild Afghanistan.

Mr. Karzai won the presidential election by default after his main challenger, Abdullah Abdullah, withdrew from a runoff, saying it was impossible for the vote to be fair.  The first round of voting on August 20 was marred¹² by widespread fraud, which mostly benefited Mr. Karzai.

1 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

2 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。

3 handout   

n.散发的文字材料；救济品

参考例句：

• I read the handout carefully.我仔细看了这份分发的资料。
• His job was distributing handout at the street-corner.他的工作是在街头发传单。

4 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

5 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

6 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

7 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。

8 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

9 deterred   

v.阻止，制止( deter的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• I told him I wasn't interested, but he wasn't deterred. 我已告诉他我不感兴趣，可他却不罢休。
• Jeremy was not deterred by this criticism. 杰里米没有因这一批评而却步。 来自辞典例句

10 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

11 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

12 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。