VOA标准英语2015--法国关塔那摩老兵警告潜在圣战分子

In France, Guantanamo Vet¹ Has Words of Caution for Would-be Jihadists 法国关塔那摩老兵警告潜在圣战分子

VENISSIEUX, FRANCE—

Radical² Islam has become a top security threat in many countries.  But why are young people attracted to it?  That is a big question facing France, where authorities estimate nearly 1,500 people have left to join jihadist groups in the Middle East.  A former Guantanamo Bay detainee may not have all the answers, but is on a campaign to change young minds.

If Mourad Benchellali’s life had gone as planned, he would not be touring the country, warning about the dangers of militant³ Islam.  Fourteen years ago, he had a job and a fiancee. Then he went to Afghanistan at the age of 19, and his life turned upside down.

Benchellali says his older brother tricked him into going to Afghanistan for a vacation.  Instead, he ended up at an al-Qaida training camp. When he finally escaped, he was arrested and sent to the Guantanamo Bay detention⁴ camp.  That was in 2001, just after the terrorist attacks in the United States.

Today, 33-year-old Benchellali is back home in Venissieux, a gritty suburb of Lyon, in central France. He is telling his story so young people will think twice before joining jihads in the Middle East.

He says he does not have all the answers about why young people are leaving, because every story is personal.  But he believes he can help find the keys.

Hundreds of French have headed to Iraq and Syria in recent months.  Their departure, says Middle East and North African specialist Mansouria Mokhefi, is leaving authorities scrambling⁵ for answers.

“The most important questions today are why are these young people leaving France?  What is attracting, what is drawing them there?  How is this propaganda so effective and how is it working?  And, above all, what has failed in France to have the young people leaving for jihad?" asks Mokhefi.

These questions are being asked across the country, but especially in places like Venissieux, where youth unemployment is high and drug dealers⁶ lurk⁷ in the shadows.  It is here where Benchellali grew up in a family of Algerian immigrants, and where his older brother turned to radical Islam.

Benchellali says he paid the price for that brother’s deceit.  He spent 30 months in Guantanamo before being transferred to French custody⁸.  When he finally left prison in 2006, he wrote a book about his experience.  He called it A Journey to Hell.

At first Benchellali’s book made little impact in France.  But that has changed with rising fears of militant Islam.  In recent months, he has testified before the French Senate and met with senior officials, and he delivers speeches in Muslim communities in the suburbs of Paris.

Chahrazed Bourih, who attended one such talk by Benchellali, believes he can help young people who are tilting⁹ toward extremism. The mother of five says she was once on that road herself.

But analyst¹⁰ Mokhefi says while Benchellali can make a difference, he is no match for the propaganda machine of groups like Islamic State.

“Yes, he can have an important role communicating, explaining, but dissuading¹¹?  I am not so sure,” says Mokhefi.

But Benchellali believes he can be a model for others.  He has rebuilt his shattered life.  His hell is over, he says, but he is afraid that for others it is only just beginning.

1 vet   

n.兽医，退役军人；vt.检查

参考例句：

• I took my dog to the vet.我把狗带到兽医诊所看病。
• Someone should vet this report before it goes out.这篇报道发表之前应该有人对它进行详查。

2 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

3 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。

4 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

5 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 dealers   

n.商人( dealer的名词复数 )；贩毒者；毒品贩子；发牌者

参考例句：

• There was fast bidding between private collectors and dealers. 私人收藏家和交易商急速竞相喊价。
• The police were corrupt and were operating in collusion with the drug dealers. 警察腐败，与那伙毒品贩子内外勾结。

7 lurk   

n.潜伏，潜行；v.潜藏，潜伏，埋伏

参考例句：

• Dangers lurk in the path of wilderness.在这条荒野的小路上隐伏着危险。
• He thought he saw someone lurking above the chamber during the address.他觉得自己看见有人在演讲时潜藏在会议厅顶上。

8 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。

9 tilting   

倾斜，倾卸

参考例句：

• For some reason he thinks everyone is out to get him, but he's really just tilting at windmills. 不知为什么他觉得每个人都想害他，但其实他不过是在庸人自扰。
• So let us stop bickering within our ranks.Stop tilting at windmills. 所以，让我们结束内部间的争吵吧！再也不要去做同风车作战的蠢事了。

10 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。

11 dissuading   

劝（某人）勿做某事，劝阻( dissuade的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• If he has once fastened upon an idea,there is no dissuading him from it. 他一旦认准一个主意，就不可能让他放弃。