2006年VOA标准英语-Alleged US Atrocities in Iraq Lead to Investiga

By Al Pessin
Pentagon
07 July 2006

The U.S. military has been hit with a series of allegations that soldiers and Marines in Iraq committed atrocities² against civilians⁴ during the last several months.  The allegations have resulted in investigations⁵, criticism and much speculation⁶ about why this series of incidents appears to have happened in a period of just a few months.

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The allegations are horrific, that U.S. Marines killed 15 civilians in the town of Haditha last November, including seven women and three children, apparently⁷ in a rage over the death of one of their comrades; that another group of Marines killed an Iraqi man in Hamdaniya in April, when they were looking for another man; that five U.S. Army soldiers entered a home in Mahmoudiya in March, murdered a family of four, and raped⁸ the older daughter, who may have been as young as 15.

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman agrees that, if the reports are true, the incidents were terrible, but he says the official criminal investigations have not yet been completed.

"Every allegation of wrongdoing by U.S. military forces is taken very seriously," he said.  "It's investigated thoroughly⁹, and when we find people that have done something that's inconsistent with the values and laws of this country, we take appropriate action and hold people accountable."

Several Marines and soldiers have been taken into custody¹⁰ while the investigations continue.  And the Commandant of the Marine¹ Corps¹¹ took the allegations so seriously that he went on a hastily arranged visit to Iraq to speak to his troops about upholding basic human values, even as they fight an enemy that likes to hide among civilians.

Officials will not speculate about why these alleged¹² incidents have apparently happened.  Outside analysts¹³ suggest it could be related to the stress of combat, the length of the war in Iraq, training deficiencies and many other factors.  But spokesman Bryan Whitman is reluctant to accept any such connections.

"We should be careful about making connections to things like you indicated," he added.  "There's no evidence to suggest that at this point.  But we don't have to guess at that.  We'll know soon enough, when the investigators¹⁴ are completed with their work.  And if there are systemic things to address, you can be sure that the military will."

Retired¹⁵ Marine Corps Major General Thomas Wilkerson offered his own ideas.

"There are times when, in the heat of battle, people lose track of their situation," he explained.  "And if they did, that could be one reason.  The other thing is, they can just be bad people."

The retired general says the military, like society as a whole, simply has some people who turn out to be criminals, and that tendency could be brought out by what he calls the 'heat of battle.'  He also cautions against jumping to conclusions about how the victims died. 

"If someone saw the shooting and can verify that, in fact, it was something completely outside of the realms of the rules of engagement, so be it, but many times it's a very muddy picture," he added.

General Wilkerson says not every civilian³ death in war is the result of misconduct or criminal activity by the troops.

"There are some who say, 'look, they died and they shouldn't have died. Someone must be responsible, and in order for them to have been killed someone must have violated the rules.'  Not true," said General Wilkerson.

At Yale University Medical School, Psychiatrist¹⁶ Deane Aikins is working on a research project with the U.S. Army to determine the impact of stress on soldiers.  The study is still in its early stages, but he says he has already determined¹⁷, through brain imaging, that some soldiers physically¹⁸ deal with the stress of battle better than others.  He says troops have to deal with what is called Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder¹⁹, or PTSD, even while they are still in the stressful environment of combat.  But he says such stress is usually internalized.

"The PTSD doesn't make you go and become homicidal.  It's very internalized anguish," said Dr. Aikins.

Dr. Aikins says he is looking for physical traits revealed in the brain images that might help predict whether a person will be a good soldier.  But he says he and other researchers have not found any such traits yet.

"Can we predict who will perform poorly?  There is 60 years of research that say we can't, with combat service.  So, this idea of can we predict who would commit a war atrocity²⁰, we don't know how to do that.  And part of it is because, look, it's so rare," added Dr. Aikins.

So far, Professor Aikins has worked with soldiers who served in Iraq and have post-traumatic stress, and some who do not, but he has not had the chance to examine anyone charged with committing an atrocity.

His work will continue, as will the military investigations of these alleged incidents.  U.S. officials emphasize that hundreds of thousands of U.S. troops have served honorably in Iraq, and more than 2,500 have died trying to secure the country's freedom.  But they also say, if any of the alleged atrocities are proved, the men responsible will be prosecuted²¹, and if there are any indications of steps commanders can take to prevent future incidents, those steps will be taken.

1 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

2 atrocities   

n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪

参考例句：

• They were guilty of the most barbarous and inhuman atrocities. 他们犯有最野蛮、最灭绝人性的残暴罪行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The enemy's atrocities made one boil with anger. 敌人的暴行令人发指。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 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。

4 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。

5 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

6 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

7 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

8 raped   

v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的过去式和过去分词 )；强奸

参考例句：

• A young woman was brutally raped in her own home. 一名年轻女子在自己家中惨遭强暴。 来自辞典例句
• We got stick together, or we will be having our women raped. 我们得团结一致，不然我们的妻女就会遭到蹂躏。 来自辞典例句

9 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

10 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。

11 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

12 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

13 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

14 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

16 psychiatrist   

n.精神病专家；精神病医师

参考例句：

• He went to a psychiatrist about his compulsive gambling.他去看精神科医生治疗不能自拔的赌瘾。
• The psychiatrist corrected him gently.精神病医师彬彬有礼地纠正他。

17 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

18 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

19 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

20 atrocity   

n.残暴，暴行

参考例句：

• These people are guilty of acts of great atrocity.这些人犯有令人发指的暴行。
• I am shocked by the atrocity of this man's crimes.这个人行凶手段残忍狠毒使我震惊。

21 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。