VOA标准英语 Pakistani Forces Deploy in New Region Infiltrated by

Militants¹ in Pakistan have ambushed² paramilitary forces who were being rushed to a region near the capital that was recently overrun by Taliban forces from the nearby Swat valley. Witnesses say gunmen in Buner district, killed at least one of the paramilitary troops. Despite the latest clashes, political leaders say they continue to favor diplomacy³ in dealing⁴ with the militants.

Troops take up key positions
　
Pakistani paramilitary soldiers (File photo)

Locals in Buner district, which is only about 100 kilometers from the Pakistani capital, say security forces began arriving Wednesday, taking up positions around government buildings and key roads. It is unclear how many additional forces have been ordered to Buner. Local officials say as many as eight platoons, or about 400 paramilitary troops have arrived in the mountainous region.

Sher Akbar, a retired⁵ lawmaker who represented Buner in parliament, tells VOA that Taliban fighters are now patrolling parts of the district and local police have not been seen in public.

Taliban controls Buner

Speaking by phone from Buner he says the Taliban are totally in control of the district and the local government has lost authority over the region.
　
Armed Pakistani Taliban chats with residents outside a mosque⁶ in Buner district of troubled Swat valley, 23 Apr 2009

Pakistani news media have reported government officials and aid groups have abandoned local offices. Sher Akbar says many in Buner are worried that fighting could break out soon between security forces and militants, and some people are preparing to leave.

Groups of militants infiltrated⁷ Buner last week, shortly after the government signed a peace deal to establish Islamic law in nearby Swat valley and other parts of the northwest. Local officials estimate more than 500,000 people live in the Buner area.

Since the Taliban's arrival, fighters have clashed with local police and armed tribal⁸ militias⁹ that initially¹⁰ tried to repel¹¹ them from the area. Local leaders had reportedly asked the provincial¹² government earlier for extra police and paramilitary troops when the controversial peace agreement in Swat was being negotiated but the request was ignored.

Clinton: situation poses 'mortal threat' to US
　
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton listens to a question as she testifies before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Capitol Hill, 22 April 2009

The government's peace agreement in the northwest, and subsequent Taliban expansion into nearby areas including Buner, has drawn¹³ intense concern in Washington. On Wednesday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused the Pakistani government of ceding¹⁴ more and more territory to the Taliban. She said the deteriorating¹⁵ situation poses what she called a "mortal threat" to the United States and the world.

"I think that we cannot underscore the seriousness of the existential threat posed to the state of Pakistan by the continuing advances, now within hours of Islamabad, that are being made by the loosely confederated group of terrorists and others who are seeking the overthrow¹⁶ of the Pakistani state, which is, as we all know, a nuclear-armed state," she said.

Pakistan defends anti-Taliban strategy

When asked about the criticism on Thursday, Pakistan's prime minister defended the government's strategy, saying officials continue to favor pursuing talks with mediator¹⁷ Sufi Muhammad in dealing with the situation.

"In case peace is not restored, then naturally the mandate¹⁸ is the provincial government - they will discuss with the jirga, with all of the political forces of their province, they will discuss with Sufi Muhammad. And if the provincial government decides otherwise or if peace is not restored, certainly we have to review our policy," said Prime Minister Gilani.

The Islamic courts have drawn criticism among lawmakers in recent days after Taliban fighters refused to disarm¹⁹ and Sufi Muhammad said militants believe the new courts will not be integrated into Pakistan's legal system. Political leaders have said the creation of a parallel legal system is unacceptable and a violation²⁰ of the peace agreement.

1 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。

2 ambushed   

v.埋伏( ambush的过去式和过去分词 )；埋伏着

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The military vehicles were ambushed. 军车遭到伏击。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

4 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

5 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

6 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

7 infiltrated   

adj.[医]浸润的v.（使）渗透，（指思想）渗入人的心中( infiltrate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The headquarters had been infiltrated by enemy spies. 总部混入了敌方特务。
• Many Chinese idioms have infiltrated into the Japanese language. 许多中国成语浸透到日语中。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

8 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

9 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

10 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

11 repel   

v.击退，抵制，拒绝，排斥

参考例句：

• A country must have the will to repel any invader.一个国家得有决心击退任何入侵者。
• Particles with similar electric charges repel each other.电荷同性的分子互相排斥。

12 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

13 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

14 ceding   

v.让给，割让，放弃( cede的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was ceding line but more slowly all the time. 他正在放出钓索，然而越来越慢了。 来自英汉文学 - 老人与海
• Settlement would require ceding some Egyptian territory. 解决办法将要求埃及让出一些领土。 来自辞典例句

15 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

16 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

17 mediator   

n.调解人，中介人

参考例句：

• He always takes the role of a mediator in any dispute.他总是在争论中充当调停人的角色。
• He will appear in the role of mediator.他将出演调停者。

18 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

19 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。

20 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。