美国有线新闻 CNN 美国称军舰遭胡塞武装导弹袭击 回顾伊斯兰教派之争

 

Jumping right in, a U.S. warship¹ was recently targeted by two missiles near the Middle Eastern country of Yemen. A military spokesman said the USS Mason was in international waters in the southern part of the Red Sea when the attack happened. The ship deployed² onboard defensive³ measures. The missiles missed their apparent target, hit the water, caused no damage.

But where they did come from? The U.S. says they were launched from a part of Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels. Who are the Houthis? They're a group thatdrove outthe Yemeni president and government last year. The Houthis have taken control of much of war-torn Yemen, but they deny that they targeted the U.S. warship.

This goes deeper though. The Houthis are Shia Muslim group and they're supported by Iran, a mostly Shia Muslim country. But they're opposed by Saudi Arabia, a mostly Sunni Muslim country that's leading other nations in attacks against the Houthis.

Tensions between Shia and Sunni Muslimsdate backcenturies.

SUBTITLE⁴: Sunni vs. Shia Islam.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR:When Islam's founder⁵, the Prophet Muhammad died in the seventh century, his followers⁷ were split over who shouldtake over, Abu Bakr was one follower⁶. They wanted to choose. Others wanted his cousin and son in law, Ali.

Ali became the leader for all Muslims for five years before he was killed. His son Husayn was killed in battle by what were to become the Sunnis.

Since then, the followers of Ali have been known as Shia.

Across the world, the vast majority of Muslims are Sunnis. What makes the Middle East so complicated are the maps that were drawn⁸ and the national boundaries that were put down about a century ago when British and the empires werepulling backfrom the region and the struggle for power today has its roots in how the region was divided, how those maps were drawn.

1 warship   

n.军舰，战舰

参考例句：

• He is serving on a warship in the Pacific.他在太平洋海域的一艘军舰上服役。
• The warship was making towards the pier.军舰正驶向码头。

2 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。

3 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。

4 subtitle   

n.副题（书本中的），说明对白的字幕

参考例句：

• His new book has a subtitle.他的新书有一个副标题。
• Ah!I don't know why they don't subtitle these movies.唉！我不知道这些电影为什么不打字幕。

5 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

6 follower   

n.跟随者；随员；门徒；信徒

参考例句：

• He is a faithful follower of his home football team.他是他家乡足球队的忠实拥护者。
• Alexander is a pious follower of the faith.亚历山大是个虔诚的信徒。

7 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

8 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。