2006年VOA标准英语-Prison Siege in Jericho Ends

By Jim Teeple
Jerusalem
14 March 2006

Israeli military authorities say a siege at a prison in the West Bank city of Jericho has ended with the surrender of a leading Palestinian militant¹. The prison siege led to the kidnapping of at least seven westerners in the Palestinian territories, most of whom have now been released.

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Israeli soldiers guard Palestinian prisoners from the prison in Jericho   
  

After a day-long siege by Israeli troops using tanks, helicopters and bulldozers, Ahmed Saadat the leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, or the PFLP, surrendered to Israeli military authorities.

Saadat and a number of other Palestinian militants² were being held at the prison under the supervision³ of British and U.S. monitors. Those linked to Saadat were detained after the PFLP claimed responsibility for the assassination⁴ of Rehavan Zeevi, Israel's tourism minister, in 2001.
 
 
Israeli soldiers guard Palestinian prisoners 
  
Israeli General Guy Tzur says the military operation was to prevent the release of Saadat, and other militants, who he says will now be put on trial in Israel for the killing⁵ of the Israeli minister.

"This was our obligation and that was the reason we prepared our forces around the city in order to prevent this release.," said General Tzur.

Israeli troops moved into Jericho early Tuesday after British and U.S. monitors who have been responsible for monitoring the prisoners under an international agreement vacated the facility, citing security concerns.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas cut short a trip to Europe to return to the Palestinian territories to deal with the crisis. Mr. Abbas said the withdrawal⁶ of the international monitors led to the Israeli action.

However British Foreign Secretary Jack⁷ Straw speaking in Parliament on Tuesday rejected the criticism, saying Palestinian authorities had received advance notice of the withdrawal, and it was Palestinian authorities who had failed to fulfill⁸ their obligations to provide adequate security at the facility. 

Ismail Haniyeh   
  
Incoming Hamas prime minister designate, Ismail Haniyeh, also criticized the Israeli action, saying it was undertaken as a get-tough election strategy by Israel's acting⁹ Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Haniyeh says Palestinian blood is being shed to help Israeli politicians win elections, and he warned Israeli officials they will suffer consequences if Ahmed Saadat is harmed.

As news of the prison siege spread violence erupted across the Palestinian territories. Protesters in Gaza set fire to a building housing the offices of the British Council. A vehicle evacuating¹⁰ westerners from the Gaza Strip was fired on but no injuries were reported. There were also a number of reported abductions of westerners in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, but most were reported released after a few hours.

1 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。

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 supervision   

n.监督，管理

参考例句：

• The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
• The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。

4 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

5 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。

6 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

7 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

8 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

9 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

10 evacuating   

撤离，疏散( evacuate的现在分词 )； 排空（胃肠），排泄（粪便）； （从危险的地方）撤出，搬出，撤空

参考例句：

• The solution is degassed by alternately freezing, evacuating and thawing. 通过交替的冻结、抽空和溶化来使溶液除气。
• Are we evacuating these potential targets? 能够在这些目标地域内进行疏散吗？