2007年VOA标准英语-Iraqi Army Soldiers From the Kurdish North Head

By Jim Randle
Baghdad
16 February 2007
 
watch Iraq Kurd Troops

Iraqi Kurd troops

Iraq's army is moving more troops into Baghdad as part of the new effort to stop sectarian violence there.  The controversial plan includes bringing Iraqi Army units to the capital from the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq.  Some critics of the plan oppose adding Kurds to Baghdad's volatile¹ ethnic² mix. VOA's Jim Randle reports from Baghdad.

It is part of the new strategy to bring tens of thousands of additional Iraqi and U.S. troops into the capital to quell³ sectarian violence that U.N. officials say killed 94 Iraqis a day last year, mostly in Baghdad.

U.S. and Iraqi Army troops recently fought to clear militants⁴ out of one key neighborhood. It is the sort of rough going that Iraqi Army units from the Kurdistan region could face once they get here.

Much of the violence in Baghdad grows out of a sectarian conflict between Shi'ite Muslim Arab militias⁶ and Sunni Muslim Arab insurgents⁷. In response, Iraq's government is bringing in thousands of troops from around the country, including the northern part of the country that Kurds call home.

Iraq's Kurds are mostly Sunni Muslims, but they differ ethnically⁸ and linguistically⁹ from their Arab countrymen.  Saddam Hussein's Sunni-dominated government persecuted¹⁰ the Kurds, killing¹¹ more than 180,000 of them in the 1980s.

Some Kurds oppose the deployment¹² and want no part of a conflict between Sunnis and Shi'ites. They say it is an internal fight among Iraqi Arabs, not worth dying for if you are an Iraqi Kurd.

Other critics point out that most Kurdish soldiers do not speak Arabic, making it difficult to communicate with the communities they are trying to patrol. News reports say some Kurds have even deserted¹³ their units rather than get into this conflict.

But Colonel Said Hazan, the commander of an Iraqi Army battalion¹⁴ made up mostly of soldiers from Kurdish areas, expresses no doubts about his troops. He says they are ready to go to Baghdad, or anywhere else, and do their duty for Iraq. "Most of these soldiers are experienced fighters who were once part of the fierce Kurdish militia⁵ called the Peshmerga.

But a Sunni member of Iraq's parliament, Omar Al-Juboori, says the key to success is whether the troops from Kurdish areas work as part of Iraq's national army, not as Peshmerga. “If they are working under the Iraqi Army, then sending them to Baghdad to quell the violence is a good idea.  But if they come representing only the Kurds, acting¹⁵ as Peshmerga, that would be bad,” he said.

A Shi'ite member of Parliament, Shatha Musawi, says this is a "daring step" for the Kurds. "The Kurds will be neutral when they patrol Baghdad's streets, and not favor either Sunnis or Shi'ites."

Some Kurdish members of Iraq's parliament also support sending troops from the north to help bring order to Baghdad. They argue that it is important to bring peace to Baghdad, because it is the capital of all of Iraq, not just the Arab parts.

Iraqi Army troops on the way to Baghdad face some logistical and organizational problems.  In one recent case, marksmanship training had to be put off due to a lack of ammunition¹⁶. Just the same, the U.S. general in charge of training Iraqi soldiers says the troops, like these officer candidates from the Kurdish north, will do "very well."

Another U.S. officer says the training will focus on larger units learning to work together smoothly and polishing urban warfare skills needed for the difficult task of patrolling Baghdad's very dangerous streets

1 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

2 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

3 quell   

v.压制，平息，减轻

参考例句：

• Soldiers were sent in to quell the riots.士兵们被派去平息骚乱。
• The armed force had to be called out to quell violence.不得不出动军队来镇压暴力行动。

4 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。

5 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。

6 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

7 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

8 ethnically   

adv.人种上，民族上

参考例句：

• Ethnically, the Yuan Empire comprised most of modern China's ethnic groups. 元朝的民族成分包括现今中国绝大多数民族。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• Russia is ethnically relatively homogeneous. 俄罗斯是个民族成分相对单一的国家。 来自辞典例句

9 linguistically   

adv. 语言的, 语言学的

参考例句：

• But this group is linguistically, culturally, and even genetically diverse. 但这个人群在语言上，文化上，甚至在遗传上都是多样化的。
• Like the EU, Belgium is linguistically and culturally divided. 与欧盟一样，比利时是个多语言、多文化的地区。

10 persecuted   

（尤指宗教或政治信仰的）迫害(~sb. for sth.)( persecute的过去式和过去分词 )； 烦扰，困扰或骚扰某人

参考例句：

• Throughout history, people have been persecuted for their religious beliefs. 人们因宗教信仰而受迫害的情况贯穿了整个历史。
• Members of these sects are ruthlessly persecuted and suppressed. 这些教派的成员遭到了残酷的迫害和镇压。

11 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。

12 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

13 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

14 battalion   

n.营；部队；大队(的人)

参考例句：

• The town was garrisoned by a battalion.该镇由一营士兵驻守。
• At the end of the drill parade,the battalion fell out.操练之后，队伍解散了。

15 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

16 ammunition   

n.军火，弹药

参考例句：

• A few of the jeeps had run out of ammunition.几辆吉普车上的弹药已经用光了。
• They have expended all their ammunition.他们把弹药用光。