2007年VOA标准英语-Gunmen From Rival Palestinian Factions Withdraw

By Robert Berger
Jerusalem
04 February 2007

In a bid to abide¹ by the latest ceasefire, gunmen from rival Palestinian factions³ are withdrawing from streets in Gaza City, where fighting has killed 28 people since Thursday. Reports from Gaza say after fighting earlier in the day, Hamas and Fatah fighters have been releasing hostages. As Robert Berger reports from VOA's Jerusalem bureau, leaders from both sides will hold talks this week.

Palestinian holds a poster of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat during a rally calling for an end to the internal fighting, in the West Bank city of Hebron, 3 Feb 2007

Gunmen from the ruling Islamic militant⁴ group Hamas attacked bases of the rival Fatah faction² in Gaza, firing assault rifles, mortars⁶ and rocket-propelled grenades. Mortar⁵ shells exploded near the offices of moderate Palestinian President and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas.

The clashes defied a ceasefire reached Saturday, which aimed to halt the slide toward a Palestinian civil war.

More than 80 Palestinians have been killed in the fighting since December, when talks on a national unity⁷ government collapsed⁸ and Mr. Abbas called for early elections. Hamas has been crippled by international sanctions because of its refusal to renounce⁹ violence and recognize Israel.

President Abbas wants to form a more moderate government, which would be acceptable to the international community and restore the flow of vital aid.

Mr. Abbas will meet with Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal on Tuesday in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, in a bid to end the fighting and resume coalition¹⁰ talks.

But Palestinian analyst¹¹ Wadia Abu Nasser says there is little chance of bridging the gaps.

"I believe that, even if a solution will be reached, it will be a temporary solution because Fatah and Hamas, they have contradictory¹² interests," he said.

Mr. Abbas hopes to achieve Palestinian statehood through internationally-backed peace talks with Israel, while Hamas seeks the destruction of Israel by force.

1 abide   

vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受

参考例句：

• You must abide by the results of your mistakes.你必须承担你的错误所造成的后果。
• If you join the club,you have to abide by its rules.如果你参加俱乐部，你就得遵守它的规章。

2 faction   

n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争

参考例句：

• Faction and self-interest appear to be the norm.派系之争和自私自利看来非常普遍。
• I now understood clearly that I was caught between the king and the Bunam's faction.我现在完全明白自己已陷入困境，在国王与布纳姆集团之间左右为难。

3 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

4 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。

5 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。

6 mortars   

n.迫击炮( mortar的名词复数 )；砂浆；房产；研钵

参考例句：

• They could not move their heavy mortars over the swampy ground. 他们无法把重型迫击炮移过那片沼泽地。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Where the hell are his mortars? 他有迫击炮吗？ 来自教父部分

7 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。

8 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

9 renounce   

v.放弃；拒绝承认，宣布与…断绝关系

参考例句：

• She decided to renounce the world and enter a convent.她决定弃绝尘世去当修女。
• It was painful for him to renounce his son.宣布与儿子脱离关系对他来说是很痛苦的。

10 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。

11 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。

12 contradictory   

adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立

参考例句：

• The argument is internally contradictory.论据本身自相矛盾。
• What he said was self-contradictory.他讲话前后不符。