VOA标准英语2014--伊拉克什叶派民兵对逊尼派平民进行报复

 

Iraqi Shi'ite Militia¹ Accused of Revenge Killings² of Sunni Civilians⁴ 伊拉克什叶派民兵对逊尼派平民进行报复

LONDON— 

Shi'ite militias⁵ in Iraq are carrying out abductions, torture and executions against the Sunni civilian³ population, according to a report from Amnesty International. The attacks are thought to be carried out in revenge for the brutal⁶ actions of Sunni Islamic State fighters in northern and central Iraq. Analysts⁷ fear a new wave of sectarian violence in the country.

Shi'ite militiamen, from the self-titled Mahdi Army, battled Islamic State fighters last month near the city of Tikrit.  The militias have taken a major role, alongside Kurdish forces and the Iraq army, in pushing back the Sunni Islamic State fighters.

But the Amnesty International report accuses the militias of carrying out abductions, executions and torture against the civilian Sunni population in parts of Iraq.

Amnesty International's Senior Crisis Response Adviser⁸ Donatella Rovera explains.

“Targeting Sunni men, seemingly in revenge, reprisal⁹ for the crimes that have been committed by Islamic State.  Basically, treating all Sunnis as somehow supporters of ISIS," said Rovera.

Amnesty says Shi'ite militias have killed dozens of Sunni civilians in the cities of Baghdad, Samarra and Kirkuk.  Hundreds of victims were reportedly found handcuffed and shot in the back of the head in execution-style killings.

The militias have become more powerful since the ISIS advance in June, says Rovera.

“The authorities have done absolutely nothing; quite the opposite.  Faced with a situation whereby the army simply fled and left abandoned the entire north of the country, if anything the authorities have been encouraging Shi'ite militias to take up arms and fight ISIS," she said.

Iraq’s new Shi'ite Prime Minister, Haider al-Abadi, has pledged to bridge Iraq’s sectarian divisions.  Many analysts blame his predecessor¹⁰, Nouri al-Maliki, for stoking tensions between Shi'ites and Sunnis.

U.N. estimates suggest well more than 1,000 people died through sectarian violence last month.

The brutalities of the Islamic State and reprisal attacks by Shi'ite militias are creating a dangerous situation in Iraq, says Donatella Rovera.

“We are seeing a level of sectarian violence that had not been seen since 2006, 2007," she said.

In those years at the height of the sectarian insurgency¹¹, Iraq’s religious clerics ultimately brought the chaos¹² under control, says Afzal Ashraf of the Royal United Services Institute.

“The reason that insurgency was brought under control was primarily because Ayatollah Sistani, the religious head of the Shi'ite community, decided¹³ that it was in the Shi'ites' interest, in Iraq’s interest, not to have that insurgency, and to escalate¹⁴ the election process by which they could gain power," said Ashraf.

As their assaults on cities in northern Iraq and Syria continue, analysts say Islamic State fighters remain the biggest threat to the region’s stability.  But the building sectarian violence presents a looming¹⁵ threat to Iraq’s future.  

1 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

2 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

3 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

4 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。

5 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

6 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

7 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。

8 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

9 reprisal   

n.报复，报仇，报复性劫掠

参考例句：

• There is no political alternative but a big reprisal.政治上没有旁的选择只能是大规模报复。
• They bombed civilian targets in reprisal.他们炮轰平民目标作为报复。

10 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

11 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

12 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

13 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

14 escalate   

v.(使)逐步增长(或发展)，(使)逐步升级

参考例句：

• It would tempt Israel's neighbors to escalate their demands.它将诱使以色列的邻国不断把他们的要求升级。
• Defeat could cause one side or other to escalate the conflict.失败可能会导致其中一方将冲突升级。

15 looming   

n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• The foothills were looming ahead through the haze. 丘陵地带透过薄雾朦胧地出现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Then they looked up. Looming above them was Mount Proteome. 接着他们往上看，在其上隐约看到的是蛋白质组山。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望