voa标准英语2008-Iraqi Court Sentences Saddam Cousin 'Chemical Al

Saddam Hussein's cousin, Ali Hassan al-Majid, known in the West as "Chemical Ali," for his role in gassing thousands of Kurds in the late 1980s, has been condemned¹ to death by an Iraqi court for a second time. Al-Majid was convicted for his role in the bloody² suppression of a Shi'ite uprising in southern Iraq in 1991. Edward Yeranian has this report from Cairo.
　

Ali Hassan al-Majid, Saddam Hussein's notorious cousin, known as 'Chemical Ali,' listens as a special Iraqi court sentenced him to death, 02 Dec 2008

The Iraqi judge read out the death sentence against Ali Hassan al-Majid with a somber³ voice, and a long litany of legal terms for war-crimes related to the brutal⁴ 1991 crackdown against Shi'ites during an ill-fated uprising against the Saddam Hussein regime.

Majid answered Judge Mohammed al-Oreibi with a polite "praise be to God," and remained calm throughout the sentencing, unlike his former comrades, who were known for frequent outbursts during earlier court sessions. His face looked drawn⁵ and tired, and he appeared resigned to his fate.

The 67-year-old cousin of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, a one-time interior minister, had earlier been convicted of genocide in the campaign of oppression against the Kurdish minority in northern Iraq in the 1980s known as the Anfal massacres⁷.

In this 1980s Iraqi TV recording⁸, al-Majid vowed⁹ to gas the Kurds for what he called their treachery and disloyalty to the Saddam Hussein regime. He won notoriety and the infamous¹⁰ nickname Chemical Ali, after using poison gas in the Kurdish town of Halabja, killing¹¹ scores of innocent people.

Al-Majid's co-conspirator in this latest trial, Abdelghani Abdul Ghaffour al-Ani, who headed Saddam Hussein's Baath party in the southern region of Basrah in the early 1990s, was also sentenced to death for war crimes in the 1991 Shi'ite uprising, following Iraq's defeat in the 1991 Gulf¹² War.

Al-Ani remained defiant¹³ until the end, shouting at the judge, insulting what he called the "U.S. occupiers," and proclaiming to God that he will "die as a martyr¹⁴ to the nation."

Judge Oreibi ultimately lost his composure, shouting at al-Ani and telling him to "shut up, and get out of here."

The verdicts followed weeks of on-again, off-again testimony¹⁵, and follow the initial June 2007 verdict in the Kurdish massacre⁶ trials. Former Defense¹⁶ Minister Sultan Hashim al-Tai, and the former Iraqi army deputy head of operations Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti were sentenced to death, along with al-Majid in that trial. Each got a life sentence in Tuesday's sentencing.

Analyst¹⁷ Oraib al Rantawi of the Al-Quds Center in Amman Jordan does not foresee any violent reaction by former Saddam Hussein supporters following the verdict, but he says it will deepen strife¹⁸ in Iraq and hamper¹⁹ the ongoing²⁰ process of reconciliation²¹ between Shi'ites, Kurds and Sunnis.

"I think this court is part of the problem in Iraq," Rantawi said. "It deepens the divisions among Iraqi groups. It is part of a long story. Therefore, I do not think there will be a serious reaction among the Iraqi groups, because the serious reaction was already done after Saddam Hussein's prosecutions²² and this penalty for him and other leaders. The ongoing trial in Iraq for these personalities²³ I think it is not part of implementing²⁴ justice in Iraq. ... I think it is part of revenge. I do not think it will make it easy for the Iraqi people to go for reconciliation."

Following months of bitter debate, Iraq's presidential council voted to approve the death sentences against al-Majid and his two other co-conspirators in the Anfal trial, last February. The three men remain in U.S. custody²⁵, and it is not clear if and when they will be executed.

1 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。

2 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

3 somber   

adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• He had a somber expression on his face.他面容忧郁。
• His coat was a somber brown.他的衣服是暗棕色的。

4 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。

5 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

6 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

7 massacres   

大屠杀( massacre的名词复数 )； 惨败

参考例句：

• The time is past for guns and killings and massacres. 动不动就用枪、动不动就杀、大规模屠杀的时代已经过去了。 来自教父部分
• Numberless recent massacres were still vivid in their recollection. 近来那些不可胜数的屠杀，在他们的头脑中记忆犹新。

8 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

9 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

10 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

11 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。

12 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

13 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

14 martyr   

n.烈士，殉难者；vt.杀害，折磨，牺牲

参考例句：

• The martyr laid down his life for the cause of national independence.这位烈士是为了民族独立的事业而献身的。
• The newspaper carried the martyr's photo framed in black.报上登载了框有黑边的烈士遗像。

15 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

16 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。

17 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

18 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

19 hamper   

vt.妨碍，束缚，限制；n.(有盖的)大篮子

参考例句：

• There are some apples in a picnic hamper.在野餐用的大篮子里有许多苹果。
• The emergence of such problems seriously hamper the development of enterprises.这些问题的出现严重阻碍了企业的发展。

20 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

21 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

22 prosecutions   

起诉( prosecution的名词复数 )； 原告； 实施； 从事

参考例句：

• It is the duty of the Attorney-General to institute prosecutions. 检察总长负责提起公诉。
• Since World War II, the government has been active in its antitrust prosecutions. 第二次世界大战以来，政府积极地进行着反对托拉斯的检举活动。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

23 personalities   

n. 诽谤，（对某人容貌、性格等所进行的）人身攻击； 人身攻击；人格, 个性, 名人( personality的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There seemed to be a degree of personalities in her remarks.她话里有些人身攻击的成分。
• Personalities are not in good taste in general conversation.在一般的谈话中诽谤他人是不高尚的。

24 implementing   

v.实现( implement的现在分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• -- Implementing a comprehensive drug control strategy. ――实行综合治理的禁毒战略。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• He was in no hurry about implementing his unshakable principle. 他并不急于实行他那不可动摇的原则。 来自辞典例句

25 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。