VOA标准英语2009年-Foreign Journalists Taken to Pakistan's Sw

Military commanders in Pakistan say that an anti-Taliban offensive in and around the northwestern Swat valley has recaptured a large swath of territory after destroying terrorist bases and killing¹ hundreds of militants³.

Under pressure from the United States and other western allies to reign⁴ in extremist forces, the Pakistani government ordered the anti-insurgency operation three weeks ago. But the move has triggered an exodus⁵ of nearly two million civilians⁶ with some 200,000 ending up in poorly-equipped makeshift camps.
　
VOA reporter Ayaz Gul (l) and other journalists on the way to the Swat valley, 22 May 2009

Amid growing skepticism about the progress of the offensive, the high number of militant² deaths and whether civilians have also been killed, the Pakistan army flew a small group of reporters from foreign organizations into Swat this week on Friday.

Dozens of Pakistani soldiers are dug in on the recently captured strategic ridge⁷, Banai Baba Ziarat, which is located at an altitude of just over 2100 meters and is the highest place in the Swat valley.

Army discovers Taliban's tunnels

Senior military officials say that until a few days ago, the ridge served as a major training facility for Taliban terrorists. It has a network of well-equipped tunnels. The biggest was six-meters-wide and 24-meters-long. While guiding reporters into one of the tunnels, Major Mansoor said the militants would go down in the valley to kidnap skilled civilians and would force them to dig the tunnels.
　
One of the tunnels discovered by Pakistani soldiers in the Swat valley, 22 May 2009

"You are right now in a tunnel that was probably used for living plus storage of ammunition⁸ and storage of weapons and it might have been used for making plans and command post sort of things," he said.

Regional commander Major-General Sajjad Ghani says the capture of Banai Baba Ziarat was a major setback⁹ for the militants and has paved the way for gains on the battlefield. He says his troops' mission is to "kill and eliminate" terrorists as well as their bases without giving them any concession¹⁰.

"We have had the experiences of talks of surrender and I don't think so there is any slightest consideration at this point in time of accepting any ceasefire or anything of that kind and we will pursue these operations to their logical end," added Ghani.

Official death toll¹¹: 1,000 militants, 63 soldiers
　
Pakistani soldiers in the Swat valley, 22 May 2009

Pakistani military officials claim ground and air attacks have killed more than 1,000 militants in the ongoing¹² offensive. The military has also confirmed more than 63 soldiers have died in the fighting.

But while flying over the valley, there was little evidence of the intense fighting. General Ghani insists this is because army raids and strikes are mostly hitting militant hideouts set up in high mountains. He dismissed suggestions that many civilians have also died in the army shelling.

"In fact from this place and as you have flown up the helicopter, you must have seen a lot of the houses, a lot of the towns," said Ghani. "Please show me one destroyed house with an artillery¹³ shell or with a bomb strike and I will be convinced. There is none what so ever."

Pakistani army says militant commander Maulana Fazalullah is hiding

Militants in the Swat region are being led by extremist cleric, Maulana Fazalullah, who is believed to be hiding in his stronghold of Peochar, which Pakistani troops have currently surrounded.
　
Pakistani soldiers in the Swat valley

Since establishing his control over most of the valley two years ago, the Taliban commander has ordered kidnappings and executions of a large number of security personnel as well as pro-government politicians.

Commander General Ghani says his forces are looking for Fazalullah. He says the extremist cleric is on the run and keeps changing his locations. The general does not rule out the possibility of terrorist leaders including Fazalullah slipping out of the area.

"This is a very difficult area. It is a rugged¹⁴ terrain¹⁵ it is very high mountains, deep valleys, thickly wooded and forested areas. The lay of the terrain and geography is such that it provides him [Fazalullah] indeed with ample opportunities to make his escape good," he said.

The Pakistani military has launched several offensives in Swat in the past two years to rein¹⁶ in Taliban extremists. Opposition¹⁷ parties and the local population criticized it for using force rather than negotiations¹⁸.

Analysts¹⁹ say Taliban lost public support in Swat

However, observers and military officials say that public support for the Taliban has almost disappeared in recent months because of extreme acts, such as slaughtering²⁰ opponents, flogging people for alleged²¹ un-Islamic acts and violating their own commitments to end the violence.
　
Pakistani army operation in the rugged Swat valley, 22 May 2009

Critics fear support for the current army action may not last longer if the war against the Taliban in Swat and neighboring districts drags on and hundreds of thousands of displaced families are neglected.

When the full-scale military operation began in the valley early this month, officials estimated there where as many as five thousand Taliban militants. Pakistani military claims a majority of the fighters, mostly new recruits have fled the offensive and those still fighting are being described as hardcore militants.

Pakistani army officers say their mission is to kill all of them, dismissing suggestions they their soldiers are being sucked into an unending guerilla war in the Swat region. While security forces are on the verge²² of capturing the town of Mingora, the administrative²³ center of the valley, regional commanders are confident most territory in Swat will be made safe within next two months to allow displaced families to return to their homes in the former tourist haven²⁴.

1 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

2 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。

3 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。

4 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

5 exodus   

v.大批离去，成群外出

参考例句：

• The medical system is facing collapse because of an exodus of doctors.由于医生大批离去，医疗系统面临崩溃。
• Man's great challenge at this moment is to prevent his exodus from this planet.人在当前所遇到的最大挑战，就是要防止人从这个星球上消失。

6 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。

7 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

8 ammunition   

n.军火，弹药

参考例句：

• A few of the jeeps had run out of ammunition.几辆吉普车上的弹药已经用光了。
• They have expended all their ammunition.他们把弹药用光。

9 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

10 concession   

n.让步，妥协；特许(权)

参考例句：

• We can not make heavy concession to the matter.我们在这个问题上不能过于让步。
• That is a great concession.这是很大的让步。

11 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。

12 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

13 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。

14 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

15 terrain   

n.地面，地形，地图

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。

16 rein   

n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治

参考例句：

• The horse answered to the slightest pull on the rein.只要缰绳轻轻一拉,马就作出反应。
• He never drew rein for a moment till he reached the river.他一刻不停地一直跑到河边。

17 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

18 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。

19 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

20 slaughtering   

v.屠杀，杀戮，屠宰( slaughter的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The Revolutionary Tribunal went to work, and a steady slaughtering began. 革命法庭投入工作，持续不断的大屠杀开始了。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• \"Isn't it terrific slaughtering pigs? “宰猪的！ 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

21 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

22 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

23 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

24 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。