voa标准英语2008年-Sri Lankan Military Captures Key Rebel-Held Tow

In Sri Lanka, the military says it has captured key areas held by Tamil Tiger rebels, in the north of the country. As Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi, the Sri Lankan army is on a major offensive to crush the rebels, who have been fighting for a Tamil homeland for 25 years.
　

Rebels examine their weapons in this handout1 picture released by The Liberation Tigers for Tamil Eeelam (LTTE) website Tamilnet (file photo)

A Sri Lankan military spokesman says that the navy sank two Tamil Tiger boats, damaged another and killed several rebels, Tuesday.

The sea battle took place as troops consolidated² their hold on three strategic towns captured from the rebels in recent days.

The most important of these is Manukulam, which lies on a junction³ of a key highway and another road leading to the main rebel stronghold.

The army says the town was used by the Tamil Tigers as a crucial supply route to the north.

Manukulam was captured Monday -- just two days after the military said it had taken control of another key town, Pooneryn. from the rebels.

Military spokesman, Udaya Nanayakkra says the military now controls the entire western coast of the island nation for the first time in a decade. He says this will hamper⁴ the rebels from operating in the sea.

"Complete western coastal⁵ area has been liberated⁶ now and we have completely stopped the Sea Tiger activities in that area," Nanayakkra said.

The government says the recent battlefield successes are "psychologically important" for troops trying to drive the rebels out of the north, where they control vast stretches of territory.

An independent assessment⁷ of the fighting in the north is difficult, because journalists are barred from the area.

However, analysts⁸ agree that the military has made significant advances against the rebels. But the head of Colombo's National Peace Council, Jehan Perera, says the rebels, who are also known as the LTTE, still remain a formidable fighting force.

"Certainly the LTTE is under pressure," Perera said. "LTTE has been giving way all the time… They have lost large amount of territory. But from what we know they still retain the bulk of their weaponry and also their core fighters, who number several thousands, so it is still premature⁹ to say that the LTTE has been irreversibly weakened."

The Sri Lankan military's next target is the main rebel stronghold, Killinochi. The government has vowed¹⁰ to crush the rebels, who have been fighting for an autonomous¹¹ homeland for the minority Tamil community since 1983.

1 handout   

n.散发的文字材料；救济品

参考例句：

• I read the handout carefully.我仔细看了这份分发的资料。
• His job was distributing handout at the street-corner.他的工作是在街头发传单。

2 consolidated   

a.联合的

参考例句：

• With this new movie he has consolidated his position as the country's leading director. 他新执导的影片巩固了他作为全国最佳导演的地位。
• Those two banks have consolidated and formed a single large bank. 那两家银行已合并成一家大银行。

3 junction   

n.连接，接合；交叉点，接合处，枢纽站

参考例句：

• There's a bridge at the junction of the two rivers.两河的汇合处有座桥。
• You must give way when you come to this junction.你到了这个路口必须让路。

4 hamper   

vt.妨碍，束缚，限制；n.(有盖的)大篮子

参考例句：

• There are some apples in a picnic hamper.在野餐用的大篮子里有许多苹果。
• The emergence of such problems seriously hamper the development of enterprises.这些问题的出现严重阻碍了企业的发展。

5 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

6 liberated   

a.无拘束的，放纵的

参考例句：

• The city was liberated by the advancing army. 军队向前挺进，解放了那座城市。
• The heat brings about a chemical reaction, and oxygen is liberated. 热量引起化学反应，释放出氧气。

7 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

8 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

9 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

10 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

11 autonomous   

adj.自治的；独立的

参考例句：

• They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province.他们自豪地宣布成为新自治省的一部分。
• This is a matter that comes within the jurisdiction of the autonomous region.这件事是属于自治区权限以内的事务。