VOA常速英语2007年-Palestinian Police Deploy in Nablus

By Robert Berger
Jerusalem
02 November 2007

The Palestinian Authority has taken a step toward resuming security control in the volatile¹ West Bank. As Robert Berger reports from VOA's Jerusalem bureau, the move comes ahead of another round of high-level diplomacy².

About 300 Palestinian policemen have deployed³ in the West Bank city of Nablus in a fresh bid to restore law and order. Israel handed control of West Bank towns to the Palestinians under the Oslo Accords in the 1990s, but the Israeli army moved back in after the Palestinian uprising erupted in 2000.

The return of Palestinian police to Nablus comes ahead of an international peace conference in the United States planned for later this year. Israeli and Palestinian negotiators have been hammering out a document on Palestinian statehood, and they also renewed their commitments under the internationally-backed "Roadmap" peace plan. The plan calls on Israel to halt settlement activity and on the Palestinians to dismantle⁴ militant⁵ groups.

So Nablus, which is known as a stronghold of Palestinian militants⁶, is seen as a test case. Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.

"This is in the interest of Palestinians: They must maintain one gun, one authority and the rule of law," said Saeb Erekat.

Israel approved the deployment⁷, saying it is part of U.S.-backed efforts to strengthen Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. He heads a moderate government in the West Bank after his Fatah forces in the Gaza Strip were routed by the Islamic militant group Hamas in a Palestinian civil war in June. Israel wants to isolate⁸ Hamas, which refuses to recognize the Jewish state or renounce⁹ violence.

Israeli spokesman Mark Regev says Nablus is an important opportunity for the Abbas government.

"If the Palestinians do what they're obligated to do under the Roadmap, then I believe we could have an independent Palestinian state in the very near future," said Regev.

The issue of Palestinian statehood will top the agenda of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who arrives here this weekend for separate talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

1 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。

2 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

3 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。

4 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

5 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。

6 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。

7 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

8 isolate   

vt.使孤立，隔离

参考例句：

• Do not isolate yourself from others.不要把自己孤立起来。
• We should never isolate ourselves from the masses.我们永远不能脱离群众。

9 renounce   

v.放弃；拒绝承认，宣布与…断绝关系

参考例句：

• She decided to renounce the world and enter a convent.她决定弃绝尘世去当修女。
• It was painful for him to renounce his son.宣布与儿子脱离关系对他来说是很痛苦的。