NPR 2009-05-11

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Craig Windham.

Tens of thousands of civilians² in Pakistan's Swat Valley took advantage of a temporary lifting of a curfew there to flee the fighting in the region today as the Pakistani army steps up its offensive to clear up militants³ from the Taliban stronghold. NPR's Julie McCarthy has more from Islamabad.

Residents reported that transport was scarce because the military denied entry of vehicles into Swat Valley for fear the militants would use them to send in reinforcements. Terrified residents also said the civilian¹ casualties were mounting. The army has been sharply criticized for loss of innocent life and for its failure to resolutely⁴ move against the Taliban before now. But the Prime Minister declared the current defensive⁵ "a battle for the survival of Pakistan". He refused to give a time frame but the fact the fighting rages a morning's drive from Islamabad makes a swift and decisive battle all the more urgent. A half million people are expected to flee before the offensive is over. And no one can say when they will return or what they will find when they do. Julie McCarthy, NPR News, Islamabad.

President Obama's top national security advisor⁶ General James Jones says the US will not rule out more air strikes against extremists in Afghanistan despite a warning from that country's president about civilian deaths caused by those attacks. "We have to have the full complement⁷ of, of our offensive military power when we need it. We have to, we can't fight with one hand tied behind our back, but on the other hand, we have to be careful to make sure that we don't unnecessarily wound or kill innocent civilians." Jones was interviewed on ABC's This Week.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai says the civilian casualties from the US air strikes are undermining public support for the American military presence in his country.

House speaker Nancy Pelosi spent this Mother's Day in Iraq. She was in Baghdad, visiting US troops and Iraqi leaders as NPR's Jonathan Blakely reports.

Along with Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, Speaker Pelosi met with Iraq's newly elected parliament speaker Ayad al-Samarrai. They discussed the ongoing⁸ US troop drawdown from Iraq and the need for both Baghdad and Washington to build up intelligence gathering⁹ in the country. "If we are going to have a diminished physical military presence, we have to have a strong intelligence presence." Prime Minister Al-Maliki wants Washington to hold to the mandate¹⁰ that US troops will be out of Iraq's large cities and urban areas by the June 30 deadline. That might be difficult. Insurgents¹¹ have maintained a steady level of violence in parts of Baghdad and in Mosul. Jonathan Blakely, NPR News, Baghdad.

A choir¹² singing on the banks of the River Jordan today as Pope Benedict visited the site where Jesus was said to have been baptized. The pontiff called on Christians¹³ in the Middle East to set an example "of reconciliation¹⁴ and peace through forgiveness and generosity¹⁵." The Pope travels to Israel tomorrow.

This is NPR News.

Former Vice¹⁶ President Dick Cheney says he has no regrets about approving harsh interrogation techniques such as waterboarding that have since been renounced¹⁷ by the Obama administration—techniques that, Cheney insists, provided good intelligence. "What happened here was an honorable approach to defending the nation that there was nothing devious¹⁸ or deceitful or dishonest or illegal about what was done." Cheney was on CBS's Face the Nation.

Firefighters in southern California took advantage of an ocean mist today to make further headway against the stubborn wildfire in Santa Barbara. That blaze is now about 55% contained. Bob Hensley of Capital Public Radio has the story.

About 15,000 evacuees¹⁹ were able to return home yesterday as the weather allowed firefighters to get a handle on the blaze that has scorched²⁰ nearly 9,000 acres since last Tuesday. All but 350 of the thousands of remaining evacuees have now been given the green light to go home. A spokeswoman for the Emergency Operation Center in Santa Barbara says the neighborhood where the 350 live is still under a mandatory²¹ evacuation order because of fire activity. Some residents have returned to find their homes heavily damaged or destroyed. Property losses are expected in the tens of millions of dollars. The cost of fighting the fire has surpassed 7 million dollars. Officials predict the wildfire will be contained by Wednesday. For NPR News, I'm Bob Hensley.

West Virginia's governor has mobilized 300 National Guard troops to help with the cleanup from a weekend of flooding in the state's southern coal fields that destroyed at least 100 buildings. And in Illinois and Missouri, utility crews are working around the clock to restore electricity to nearly 100,000 homes and businesses after powerful storms hit that region.

I'm Craig Windham, NPR News from Washington.

1 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

2 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

3 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。

4 resolutely   

adj.坚决地，果断地

参考例句：

• He resolutely adhered to what he had said at the meeting. 他坚持他在会上所说的话。
• He grumbles at his lot instead of resolutely facing his difficulties. 他不是果敢地去面对困难，而是抱怨自己运气不佳。

5 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

6 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

7 complement   

n.补足物，船上的定员；补语；vt.补充，补足

参考例句：

• The two suggestions complement each other.这两条建议相互补充。
• They oppose each other also complement each other.它们相辅相成。

8 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。

9 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

10 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

11 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

12 choir   

n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱

参考例句：

• The choir sang the words out with great vigor.合唱团以极大的热情唱出了歌词。
• The church choir is singing tonight.今晚教堂歌唱队要唱诗。

13 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

14 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。

15 generosity   

n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为

参考例句：

• We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
• We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。

16 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

17 renounced   

v.声明放弃( renounce的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃

参考例句：

• We have renounced the use of force to settle our disputes. 我们已再次宣布放弃使用武力来解决争端。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Andrew renounced his claim to the property. 安德鲁放弃了财产的所有权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 devious   

adj.不坦率的，狡猾的；迂回的，曲折的

参考例句：

• Susan is a devious person and we can't depend on her.苏姗是个狡猾的人，我们不能依赖她。
• He is a man who achieves success by devious means.他这个人通过不正当手段获取成功。

19 evacuees   

n.被疏散者( evacuee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Moreover, for multi-exits, evacuees select a exit based on game theory. 在有多个出口时，疏散人员根据对策论选择出口。 来自互联网
• Evacuees wade through flooded area following heavy monsoon rains in Peshawar on Saturday, July 31, 2010. 撤离灾区涉水通过后在白沙瓦沉重的季风降雨在周六，2010年7月31日。 来自互联网

20 scorched   

烧焦，烤焦( scorch的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（植物）枯萎，把…晒枯； 高速行驶； 枯焦

参考例句：

• I scorched my dress when I was ironing it. 我把自己的连衣裙熨焦了。
• The hot iron scorched the tablecloth. 热熨斗把桌布烫焦了。

21 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。