VOA标准英语2010年-Airstrikes Target al-Qaida in Yemen

Yemen says its fighter jets struck the home of a prominent al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula terrorist, the day after new international sanctions were announced against the group. 

Yemeni government fighter jets launched a series of raids against the fortified¹ compound of a prominent terrorist Ayad al-Shabwani, reportedly destroying the structure.  Militants² close to Shabwani claim he survived the raids.

Al-Jazeera TV showed images of the damaged compound, although it was not clear when they were taken.  Missiles appear to have pierced a gaping³ hole on one side of the mud-brick fortress⁴.

Yemen Post newspaper editor-in-chief Hakim Almasmari indicated air raids have been continuing throughout the day in a bid to kill Shabwani and fellow militants.

"Today, there have been 17 raids inside Maarib, most of them trying to attack Shabwani and his friends.  They are still ongoing," he said.  "Until now, there is only one al-Qaida leader killed. [Yemeni security forces] have troops on the ground, but doing nothing.  Most of the attacks are from the air."

Eyewitnesses⁵ say a number of people have been killed in the raids and villagers using anti-aircraft guns are firing back at Yemeni warplanes.

The Yemeni government had reported last week that Shabwani and five other top al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula terrorists had been killed in an airstrike on three vehicles in which they were riding.  But a statement from the terrorist group said Shabwani survived.  The group's military chief, Qassem al-Raimi, does appear to have been killed.

In a related development, Yemeni-American Anwar al-Awlaki, who is suspected of ties with Fort Hood⁶ bomber⁷ Nidal Malik Hassan, reportedly told a Yemeni journalist that he would not surrender.  Hakim Almasmari says that Awlaki continues to deny being a member of al-Qaida.

"He refused any claims of being an al-Qaida member," he said.  "He will not surrender himself, because he does not trust the government that they will not harm him.  But he has some extreme ideas.  He is in Shabwa province in Khor al-Awarib, very massive mountains in Shabwa that are very hard to reach and being guarded by his own tribesmen.  His father is one of the five biggest politicians in Yemen."

Yemeni government TV reported Foreign Minister Abou Bakr al-Qurbi met in Washington with U.S. national security advisor⁸ General James Jones, as well as with CIA Director Leon Panetta.  Qurbi, noted⁹, according to the TV, that Yemen had "suffered a great deal from terrorism and will cooperate with the international community in curbing¹⁰ extremism, which threatens the security of the region and of the world."

Meanwhile, Britain has canceled flights to Yemen, indicating the safety of flights to the volatile¹¹ country could no longer be assured.

 

1 fortified   

adj. 加强的

参考例句：

• He fortified himself against the cold with a hot drink. 他喝了一杯热饮御寒。
• The enemy drew back into a few fortified points. 敌人收缩到几个据点里。

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 gaping   

adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大

参考例句：

• Ahead of them was a gaping abyss. 他们前面是一个巨大的深渊。
• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 fortress   

n.堡垒，防御工事

参考例句：

• They made an attempt on a fortress.他们试图夺取这一要塞。
• The soldier scaled the wall of the fortress by turret.士兵通过塔车攀登上了要塞的城墙。

5 eyewitnesses   

目击者( eyewitness的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The examination of all the eyewitnesses took a week. 对所有证人的质询用了一周的时间。
• Several eyewitnesses testified that they saw the officers hit Miller in the face. 几位目击证人证明他们看见那几个警官打了米勒的脸。

6 hood   

n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖

参考例句：

• She is wearing a red cloak with a hood.她穿着一件红色带兜帽的披风。
• The car hood was dented in.汽车的发动机罩已凹了进去。

7 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

8 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 curbing   

n.边石，边石的材料v.限制，克制，抑制( curb的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Progress has been made in curbing inflation. 在控制通货膨胀方面已取得了进展。
• A range of policies have been introduced aimed at curbing inflation. 为了抑制通货膨胀实施了一系列的政策。

11 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。