2006年VOA标准英语-US Troops Fight Afghanistan Insurgency Alo

By Benjamin Sand
Burmel, Afghanistan
18 May 2006
 

Foreign security guards stand near scene where car bomb exploded in Herat, May 18, 2006  
  
A "summer offensive" by Taleban militants² is reportedly behind violent attacks perpetrated throughout Afghanistan in recent weeks. U.S. and Afghan forces say the insurgents⁴ are increasingly dependent on training camps and safe haven⁵ in neighboring Pakistan.

-------------------------------------

U.S. forces in Afghanistan's Paktika Province fire mortar⁶ rounds at a nearby mountaintop.

Insurgents have been using the isolated⁷ ridgeline to launch rockets into the U.S. camp in Orgun-E, not far from the Pakistan border.

These are America's frontline troops against the insurgency⁸ in Afghanistan. Their heavily fortified⁹ camp occupies a narrow strip of land separating the unstable¹⁰ border region from the rest of the relatively¹¹ stable province.

First Lieutenant¹² Sean Parnell says that in the past month, the attacks in this area have intensified¹³.

"Just within the past four weeks, things have picked up so much it has been pretty much continuous operations. Every single man out here has been running hard," he said.

Lieutenant Colonel Chris Toner says most of the insurgents in this area make their base inside Pakistan, and only cross into Afghanistan for combat operations.

Pakistan originally rejected suggestions that Taleban and al-Qaida militant¹ were using Pakistani territory to launch attacks into Afghanistan.

The Pakistanis now insist they are doing everything they can to help secure the border. The Pakistani military has deployed¹⁴ 80,000 troops to the region, and is increasingly coordinating¹⁵ its efforts with U.S.-led coalition¹⁶ forces inside Afghanistan.

Key to that coordinated¹⁷ strategy are forward bases like the U.S. camp in the town of Burmel, located closer to the border than Orgun-E, inside a dense¹⁸ network of dirt roads and narrow trails crisscrossing the porous¹⁹ border.

Soldiers based here use armed trucks to patrol the dusty countryside, avoiding roads that could be mined by insurgents.

In one of the small border villages, Captain James Dye orders house-to-house searches for any sign of militant activity.

"They do not stand out, that is the hardest thing with this enemy, they can blend in with the population, and without the population's help, pointing at a guy [and] saying, that guy does not live here, its very hard to distinguish them," he said.

He says the villagers here have been reluctant to help identify militants.

But that does not mean they are not here. A convoy²⁰ passing through this village just last week was ambushed²¹ by at least a dozen suspected Taleban fighters. The U.S. forces say they escaped injury, and killed at least eight of the attackers.

On this visit, the village elders again insist there has been no sign of any insurgent³ activity.

He says he considers the Taleban outsiders, and promises they are not receiving any assistance from his community.

But just a few minutes later, a burst of gunfire sends the soldiers running for cover.

Insurgents on a nearby hilltop open fire on the soldiers down below before retreating into the surrounding countryside.

Within minutes, the troops are on the move, hoping to capture the militants before they slip back across the border. By early evening, though, it appears that the attackers have gotten away.

Colonel Toner says it is rare these days for U.S. forces to launch sweeping²² combat operations in the area. The goal now is twofold: limiting the conflict to the border, and making sure the rest of the impoverished²³ province is safe for development.

"If I am fighting along the border, I am winning, because the population base is inside," he said. "Really what I am doing is, I am providing an opportunity for the government to get established, and for the people to get some sort of economic stability."

The U.S. forces in Afghanistan do not focus solely²⁴ on military operations. They are paying local contractors²⁵ millions of dollars for development projects including new schools, roads and water systems.

They are also helping²⁶ train the new Afghan National Army, which has 30,000 troops and hopes to more than double in size in the next few years.

Almost all the U.S. bases in Paktika province include barracks for Afghan troops, and the two armies now work side by side on most operations.

But Colonel Toner admits it will be a long, slow fight.

He says most of the insurgents are Taleban, some al-Qaida, and he says there are also at least two local warlords with their own militia²⁷ in the region staging attacks on coalition forces.

He says the insurgents themselves are from the surrounding area, a traditional Taleban stronghold, but there is mounting evidence that foreigners, including Arabs, Chechens, and Uzbeks, are helping train them inside Pakistan.

They typically attack at night, he says, and then slip back into Pakistan before sunrise. As long as they stay on the far side, the U.S. and Afghan troops cannot touch them.

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 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。

3 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

4 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

5 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

6 mortar   

n.灰浆，灰泥；迫击炮；v.把…用灰浆涂接合

参考例句：

• The mason flushed the joint with mortar.泥工用灰浆把接缝处嵌平。
• The sound of mortar fire seemed to be closing in.迫击炮的吼声似乎正在逼近。

7 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

8 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

9 fortified   

adj. 加强的

参考例句：

• He fortified himself against the cold with a hot drink. 他喝了一杯热饮御寒。
• The enemy drew back into a few fortified points. 敌人收缩到几个据点里。

10 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

11 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

12 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

13 intensified   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Violence intensified during the night. 在夜间暴力活动加剧了。
• The drought has intensified. 旱情加剧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 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。

15 coordinating   

v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的现在分词 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• He abolished the Operations Coordinating Board and the Planning Board. 他废除了行动协调委员会和计划委员会。 来自辞典例句
• He's coordinating the wedding, and then we're not going to invite him? 他是来协调婚礼的，难道我们不去请他？ 来自电影对白

16 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

17 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

18 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

19 porous   

adj.可渗透的，多孔的

参考例句：

• He added sand to the soil to make it more porous.他往土里掺沙子以提高渗水性能。
• The shell has to be slightly porous to enable oxygen to pass in.外壳不得不有些细小的孔以便能使氧气通过。

20 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

21 ambushed   

v.埋伏( ambush的过去式和过去分词 )；埋伏着

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The military vehicles were ambushed. 军车遭到伏击。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

23 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。

25 contractors   

n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Contractors winning construction jobs had to kick back 2 per cent of the contract price to the mafia. 赢得建筑工作的承包商得抽出合同价格的百分之二的回扣给黑手党。 来自《简明英汉词典》

26 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

27 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。