2007年VOA标准英语-Korean Hostages in Afghanistan Capture Internat

By Benjamin Sand
Islamabad
22 July 2007

South Korean man reads a newspaper reporting South Koreans kidnapped in Afghanistan in downtown Seoul, 22 Jul 2007

Afghan military officials say national and foreign forces have launched a major operation to free 23 South Korean hostages taken by Taleban militants¹ earlier this week. A Taleban spokesman says the group will begin to kill the Koreans Sunday evening unless the insurgents²' demands are met. Correspondent Benjamin Sand reports from VOA's South Asia bureau in Islamabad.

Afghan officials say troops have moved into several areas in eastern Afghanistan where the Korean hostages may be located, but so far no fighting has been reported.

As the joint³ operation began Sunday morning, a high-level South Korean delegation⁴ reached Kabul, hoping to help facilitate the hostages' release.

Taleban militants seized the group of the evangelical Christian⁵ Koreans on Thursday southwest of Kabul, and have threatened to kill them unless South Korea withdraws its troops from Afghanistan and the Afghan government frees a number of Taleban prisoners.

 

Korean officials describe the group of eight men and 15 women as "medical and humanitarian⁶ volunteers." South Korean president Roh Moo-hyun issued a televised appeal for their safe return on Friday, and insisted Seoul would conduct "sincere" negotiations⁷ for their release.

On Sunday, supporters and family members held vigils in the South Korean capital, pleading for a swift resolution of the crisis.

Surrounded by reporters, this young man says that if anything happens to the hostages, he will have nothing left to live for.

South Korea only has around 200 non-combat troops in Afghanistan, and they were already scheduled to leave the country by the end of the year. The South Korean Defense⁸ Ministry⁹ says preparations for their withdrawal¹⁰ have already begun.

In Afghanistan, local tribal¹¹ leaders are reportedly helping¹² direct talks with the purported¹³ Taleban captors in Ghazni, southwest of Kabul. A man calling himself a Taleban spokesman said any attempt to forcibly free the hostages would result in bloodshed.

On Saturday, Taleban forces claimed they had executed two German hostages they had captured three days earlier.

Afghan officials recovered the body of one of the Germans Sunday, but are disputing the Taleban's claims.

Both German and Afghan authorities say the man died of natural causes induced by the stress of his captivity¹⁴.

Officials say they believe the second hostage is still alive.

1 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。

2 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

3 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

4 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

5 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

6 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。

7 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

9 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

10 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

11 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

12 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。

13 purported   

adj.传说的，谣传的v.声称是…，（装得）像是…的样子( purport的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• the scene of the purported crime 传闻中的罪案发生地点
• The film purported to represent the lives of ordinary people. 这部影片声称旨在表现普通人的生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。