2006年VOA标准英语-Hamas Faces Daunting Tasks as It Tries to

By Sonja Pace
21 February 2006
 

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, right, and Ismail Haniyeh seen during talks in Gaza City, February 20, 2006   
  
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has officially asked Hamas to form a new government after the militant¹ group won a surprise victory in legislative² elections last month. It is likely to be a daunting³ task amid drastic cuts in incoming funds and uncertainty⁴ over how the international community will deal with a government headed by a fundamentalist Islamic group, that is also viewed by some, including the United States, as a terrorist organization.

Behind the scenes political talks were already under way even before President Abbas tasked Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh with forming a new government.

Haniyeh has just a month to do it. At the same time, he also faces the immediate⁶ task of paying more than 100,000 Palestinian civil servants next month, after Israel announced it was freezing the handover of monthly tax and customs revenues.

Hamas has said it would seek alternative funding from Arab and Muslim countries after western donors⁷ threatened to also cut off funds unless Hamas renounces⁸ violence and recognizes Israel's right to exist - demands that Hamas has thus far refused.

Arab League foreign ministers meeting in Algeria failed to come up with a unified⁹ commitment to fill the funding gap and put off a final decision until next month's summit in Khartoum, Sudan.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice is in the Middle East to urge Arab allies to send a clear message to Hamas that it must meet international demands.

"We have encouraged and will continue to encourage, both publicly and private, individual countries to consider what kind of assistance they might provide in light of Hamas' decisions," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack.

Washington has said it would try to continue funding humanitarian¹⁰ assistance, but has also asked the Palestinian Authority to return nearly $50 million in unspent aid money.

In an opinion piece in Monday's Washington Post newspaper, former President Jimmy Carter appealed to the U.S. government and Israel to play a positive role and not punish the Palestinian people by halting badly needed assistance.

President Carter led a team of international monitors to observe last month's elections.

At the time, Mr. Carter told reporters in Jerusalem he hoped donors would find creative and alternative ways to funnel¹¹ aid. "The ultimate concern that I have is the Palestinian people themselves, no matter who their government leaders might be. And, they are the ones that will suffer if the aid does not come forward, if the schoolteachers are not paid, if the policemen are not paid. I think chaos¹² is going to result," he said.

Palestinian leaders have also warned of serious consequences and potential violence if the financial situation worsens.

Israeli and some western officials believe now is the time to pressure Hamas to change its policy. Others say too much pressure could prove counterproductive and drive Hamas to seek assistance from place like Iran and Syria.

President Carter says Hamas should be given a chance to prove that it will do as it says, namely form a peaceful unity⁵ government.

Syrian political analyst¹³ Marwan Kabalan of Damascus University's Strategic Studies Center also says Hamas and other such fundamentalist Islamic groups should be given a chance. "The only way to pragmatize the Islamist forces in the region is to put them in power, let them face the realities of ruling and governing, allow them to get out from underground and participate in the political process and I believe that gradually they will try to pragmatize their positions, according to the realities of their own country and to the realities of international relations," he said.

Kabalan believes Hamas will gradually moderate its stance. One thing is certain, the international community will be watching closely.

1 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。

2 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

3 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。

4 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

5 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 renounces   

v.声明放弃( renounce的第三人称单数 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃

参考例句：

• Japan renounces all right, title and claim to Formosa and the Pescadores. 日本放弃对福尔摩沙（台湾）及澎湖的一切权利，主张（名称）及所有权。 来自互联网
• He renounces Christianity, temporarily straining his relationship with his parents. 他放弃了基督教信仰，从而与父母的关系暂时变得紧张。 来自互联网

9 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

10 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

11 funnel   

n.漏斗；烟囱；v.汇集

参考例句：

• He poured the petrol into the car through a funnel.他用一个漏斗把汽油灌入汽车。
• I like the ship with a yellow funnel.我喜欢那条有黄烟囱的船。

12 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

13 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。