VOA标准英语2009年-Somali Government Dismisses al-Shabab Ulti

Somalia's U.N.-backed government has dismissed an ultimatum¹ issued by the country's al-Shabab extremist group for government forces to surrender their weapons within five days. Somali leaders are counting on the arrival of more African Union peacekeepers in Somalia to help defend against rebel attempts to topple the government.
　
Armed Al-Shabaab fighters patrol Bakara Market in Mogadishu, Somalia, 29 Jun 2009

The al-Shabab ultimatum was delivered to the government late Sunday in an audio tape.

The speaker, identified as al-Shabab's reclusive leader Ahmed Abdi Godane, also known as Abu Zubayr, said government forces have five days to surrender their weapons to al-Shabab and return to their homes. He says government leaders will be put on trial, charged with killing² civilians³ and encouraging the re-occupation of Somalia by foreign armies.

Godane was referring to an urgent appeal the government made last month for neighboring countries to send troops to Somalia to prevent the besieged⁴ government from being toppled.

The government's defense⁵ chief, Mohamed Siad Yusuf "Inda'ade," dismissed the threat, describing Godane as a man who is so afraid of being seen, he wears women's clothing as a disguise.

Godane was trained by al-Qaida in Afghanistan and is believed to have planned several terrorist attacks in his native Somaliand. He began taking on a more visible role in al-Shabab after a U.S. missile strike killed the al-Shabab's founder⁶ and leader, Aden Hashi Ayro, in May, 2008.
　
New Somali navy recruits train near the old seaport⁷ in northern Mogadishu, 10 Jun 2009

Al-Shabab and Hisbul Islam accuse the government of moderate-Islamist President Sharif Sheik Ahmed of being a western puppet and have vowed⁸ to overthrow⁹ it.

Two months of fighting in the capital Mogadishu between the rebels and government forces have killed more than 300 people and have displaced nearly 200,000 others. In the past month, several government officials, including the country's security minister, have been assassinated¹⁰.

The militants¹¹ control most of southern Somalia. But their attempts to seize power in Mogadishu have been blocked by the presence of 4,300 African Union peacekeepers from Uganda and Burundi. The government says as many as 1,000 foreigners are now in Somalia, fighting alongside al-Shabab and Hisbul Islam forces.

African Union peacekeepers first arrived in March, 2007 to guard key sites in the capital and to provide humanitarian¹² assistance. At last week's African Union summit in Libya, Somali government officials and western diplomats¹³ urged the pan-African body to strengthen the mandate¹⁴ of the mission so that A.U. troops could also track and pursue the rebels.

Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke said Sunday his government has received assurances from the African Union that additional help will soon be on the way.

The Somali leader says the government has received a firm pledge for additional peacekeepers to be deployed¹⁵ in Somalia and a change in the mandate to allow them to fight alongside government forces. Mr. Sharmarke did not give further details.

The United States, which lists al-Shabab as a terrorist organization, has acknowledged sending arms and providing military training worth just less than $10 million to Somalia's shaky government. Washington has pledged to continue supporting the government militarily, but has ruled out sending U.S. troops.

Analysts¹⁶ say even without American troops, the move is risky¹⁷ because any arms sent to Somalia could end up being diverted to the insurgents¹⁸. Last month, at least 30 disgruntled government soldiers quit their posts and joined the rebel group, Hisbul Islam.

1 ultimatum   

n.最后通牒

参考例句：

• This time the proposal was couched as an ultimatum.这一次该提议是以最后通牒的形式提出来的。
• The cabinet met today to discuss how to respond to the ultimatum.内阁今天开会商量如何应对这道最后通牒。

2 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。

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 besieged   

包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Paris was besieged for four months and forced to surrender. 巴黎被围困了四个月后被迫投降。
• The community besieged the newspaper with letters about its recent editorial. 公众纷纷来信对报社新近发表的社论提出诘问，弄得报社应接不暇。

5 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

6 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

7 seaport   

n.海港，港口，港市

参考例句：

• Ostend is the most important seaport in Belgium.奥斯坦德是比利时最重要的海港。
• A seaport where ships can take on supplies of coal.轮船能够补充煤炭的海港。

8 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

9 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。

10 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

11 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。

12 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。

13 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 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。

15 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

16 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。

17 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

18 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网