2006年VOA标准英语-Olmert Says Israel Winning Against Hezbollah

By Sonja Pace
Jerusalem
01 August 2006

 
A plume¹ of smoke billows in the Lebanese border village of Aita al-Shaab after is was hit by Israeli artillery², Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2006 
  

Heavy fighting was reported as Israeli troops battled Hezbollah guerrillas in border villages in southern Lebanon while Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert insists his country is winning the battle against the Islamic militant³ group.   

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Prime Minister Olmert struck a defiant⁴ tone, saying Israel is winning the battle against Hezbollah.

He said every extra day of fighting counts in diminishing the strength of the enemy. 

Ehud Olmert (file photo)   
  
Speaking at a graduation ceremony at the National Security College, Prime Minister Olmert said Hezbollah would never again be able to threaten Israel.  He said it was not in Israel's interest to agree to a cease-fire right now.  But he also noted⁵ the beginning of a diplomatic process that would lead to an eventual⁶ cease-fire under different conditions than in the past.

Mr. Olmert's comments follow an approval by his security Cabinet to expand the ground offensive in southern Lebanon and shortly after the military said it would resume full-scale air strikes on Wednesday. 

Israel partially⁷ suspended air attacks for 48 hours in the wake of Sunday's bombing of the southern Lebanese village of Qana, in which nearly 60 people were killed, most of them women and children.

Despite a partial suspension, Israeli warplanes struck villages throughout much of southern Lebanon and targeted suspected Hezbollah strongholds elsewhere in the country.  And Israeli artillery bombarded border villages as ground forces expanded their operations in the area. 

Hezbollah's al-Manar television reported militants⁸ ambushed⁹ and pinned down Israeli troops in the village of Aita al Shaab, killing¹⁰ or wounding 35 soldiers.  Those casualties have not been independently confirmed.  Israel's justice minister, Haim Ramon, said about 300 Hezbollah fighters, have been killed since the conflict broke out nearly three-weeks ago while another minister put that figure at 400.  

The military says Israeli attacks have knocked out much of Hezbollah's rocket arsenal¹¹.  But Israeli Housing Minister Meir Sheetrit cautioned earlier that Israel cannot wipe out all of Hezbollah's rockets.

There is no such option, warned Sheetrit, not by land and not by air.  It is impossible to completely destroy their ability to launch Katyushas, the minister said.

International pressure for an immediate¹² cease-fire is growing, but the United States and Israel remain firmly opposed to such a move, while other major powers within the European Union and the U.N. Security Council remain divided over the issue.  

1 plume   

n.羽毛；v.整理羽毛，骚首弄姿，用羽毛装饰

参考例句：

• Her hat was adorned with a plume.她帽子上饰着羽毛。
• He does not plume himself on these achievements.他并不因这些成就而自夸。

2 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

3 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。

4 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 eventual   

adj.最后的，结局的，最终的

参考例句：

• Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
• Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。

7 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

8 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。

9 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》

10 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

11 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

12 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。