2006年VOA标准英语-Iraq Braces for Verdict in Saddam Hussein War C

By Benjamin Sand
Irbil, Iraq
04 November 2006

		Saddam Hussein in court, Sept. 25, 2006

A verdict in Saddam Hussein's long-running war crimes trial is finally near, and could come as early as Sunday morning. From Iraq, VOA's Benjamin Sand reports that security has been stepped up around the country, as officials there brace¹ for a possibly violent backlash if the former Iraqi dictator is found guilty.

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Military leaves have been canceled and Iraqi troops are on high alert.

A week ago, Saddam Hussein's defense² lawyer warned that a guilty verdict in the lengthy³ trial could spark violence throughout the Middle East.

Former Iraqi President Saddam and seven co-defendants are being tried for allegedly ordering the murder in 1982 of nearly 150 people in the Shi'ite town of Dujail, north of Baghdad. The killings⁴ came after an attempt on Saddam's life.

The court in Baghdad has been hearing evidence in the case for 10 months. If convicted, the ousted⁵ Iraqi dictator could face the death penalty.

Whatever the verdict, many Iraqis say the trial has already stripped Saddam of his once almost mystical hold over the country.

"It's gone, totally gone," says an Iraqi. "We don't fear of him anymore, we don't fear. He don't have power anymore, he don't have his people who pray for him, not anymore. All this [is] gone, he's nothing, only a normal person now."

One possible measure of Saddam's diminished stature⁶ is the fact that public interest in the trial has appeared to wane⁷ considerably⁸.

The proceedings⁹ are shown live on national television, but what with delays in court, and a surge in sectarian violence across much of the country distracting their attention, many people say they stopped watching months ago.

Twenty-nine-year-old Ali Hussein, an outspoken¹⁰ critic of Saddam, recently left Baghdad for the relative safety of the Kurdistan region in Northern Iraq.

He says the trial has taken a back seat to the struggle of many families here simply to survive the expanding violence.

"The most important thing in Iraq is how people can live safe and can we stop [the killing]," he said. "I don't care what's going to happen to Saddam Hussein. If he's going to be killed or not, if he's going to jail or not, what I care about is my family, my work in Iraq."

Saddam is being tried in two separate war crimes cases at the same time. In the second case, he is accused of genocide, stemming from the so-called Anfal campaign in 1988 against the Kurds of Northern Iraq.

A verdict in that second trial is not expected until sometime next year. However, if Saddam is convicted and condemned¹¹ in the Dujail case, many Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, are pushing for him to be executed quickly, even if the Anfal trial is still in progress.

But legal experts here say such quick action remains¹² highly unlikely. If the first court does impose the death penalty in the Dujail case, the sentence would automatically be appealed to a nine-member appellate court. A final decision there could take at least several months.

1 brace   

n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备

参考例句：

• My daughter has to wear a brace on her teeth. 我的女儿得戴牙套以矫正牙齿。
• You had better brace yourself for some bad news. 有些坏消息,你最好做好准备。

2 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。

3 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

4 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。

5 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

6 stature   

n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材

参考例句：

• He is five feet five inches in stature.他身高5英尺5英寸。
• The dress models are tall of stature.时装模特儿的身材都较高。

7 wane   

n.衰微，亏缺，变弱；v.变小，亏缺，呈下弦

参考例句：

• The moon is on the wane.月亮渐亏。
• Her enthusiasm for him was beginning to wane.她对他的热情在开始减退。

8 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

9 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

10 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

11 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。