2006年VOA标准英语-Efforts Begin to Rebuild Lebanon

By Meredith Buel
Washington
05 September 2006
 

Lebanese woman Zeinab Beydoun sits in her house that was damaged by an Israeli attack in southern town of Bint Jbeil, September 4, 2006  
  
Lebanese officials say the month-long fighting between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas wiped out much of the infrastructure¹ built during 15 years of reconstruction², following the end of the country's civil war. At a recent donors³ conference, nations pledged nearly $1 billion to help rebuild the country and specialists are focusing on both the short and long-term needs of the Lebanese people. 

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U.S. aid officials estimate about 250,000 people remain displaced in Lebanon and the United Nations says about 15,000 homes were destroyed in the fighting.

The Director of Energy and Water at the World Bank, Jamal Saghir, says basic needs such as food, clean water, health care and shelter, as well as services such as electricity, must be the first priorities to help people in the battle zone.

"We need to focus on bringing stability to the social system, particularly in the conflict area. Bringing stability to the people and the social system is very important because they return to their villages with nothing, except their dignity and their poverty," said Saghir.

William Garvelink of the U.S. Agency for International Development says aid workers are beginning to remove unexploded ordinance⁴ so people can return safely to what is left of their villages in southern Lebanon.

Garvelink says the United States has spent about $55 million delivering humanitarian⁵ aid and is also focusing on efforts to improve the devastated⁶ economy.

"We are focused on small scale businessmen and helping⁷ them get their business up and running and get local economies moving again," he said.

Lebanese woman walks on the rubble⁸ of her extended family's house in the southern border village of Aita al-Shaab   
  
Troops that are part of the U.N. multi-national peacekeeping force have begun to arrive in Lebanon to monitor the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

The U.N. Security Council has approved a resolution for the expansion of the U.N. force already in southern Lebanon to 15,000 soldiers. The resolution stresses the Lebanese government must take control over all its territory and disarm⁹ Hezbollah.

 
Man covers his mouth to avoid breathing in dust as an excavator clears the rubble of a building in southern suburbs of Beirut, which was destroyed by an attack by Israeli forces, September 5, 2006 
  
Patricia Karam, a senior program officer at the U.S. Institute of Peace, says the peacekeepers and the government in Beirut are not likely to be successful in removing weapons from Hezbollah fighters.

"Hezbollah is unlikely to stop insisting that its forces have an important role to play in defending the country," said Karam. "At the same time any attempt by the Lebanese Army or by any U.N. multi-national force to disarm Hezbollah, especially in light of the movement's new political standing¹⁰ in the area, is risky¹¹."

U.S. officials estimate Hezbollah receives about $100 million in support from Iran, which supplies weapons to the group by transporting them through Syria.

A Middle East analyst¹² at the Washington Institute for Near East policy, David Schenker, says he believes Damascus will continue efforts to undermine Lebanon's democratically elected government led by Prime Minister Fuad Siniora.

"I think most importantly, the idea of democracies on the Syrian border, we have seen that they have taken steps, primarily in Iraq, but also in Lebanon to undermine this," noted¹³ Schenker. "They want to undermine the Siniora government. They do not want the increased pressure of having pro-Western regimes on their border."

Schenker says while there is no political solution in sight to the conflict between Israel and that reconstruction will work," he continued. "I do not think that requires some sort of broader regional framework of peace for it to be sustainable. Ultimately, it probably will need peace. Otherwise, every ten years Lebanon will be destroyed."

U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan says he hopes the U.N.-mediated ceasefire that ended the war could be the basis for a long-term peace accord.

1 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

2 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

3 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》

4 ordinance   

n.法令；条令；条例

参考例句：

• The Ordinance of 1785 provided the first land grants for educational purposes.1785年法案为教育目的提供了第一批土地。
• The city passed an ordinance compelling all outdoor lighting to be switched off at 9.00 PM.该市通过一条法令强令晚上九点关闭一切室外照明。

5 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。

6 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

7 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。

8 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

9 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。

10 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

11 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

12 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。

13 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。