VOA标准英语2008年-Israeli-Hamas Truce Set to Begin Thursday

By Robert Berger
Jerusalem
17 June 2008

Palestinian and Egyptian officials say Israel and the Islamic militant¹ group Hamas have reached a cease-fire agreement that will go into effect in Gaza on Thursday. Israel would not confirm the deal, but said a negotiator was rushing to Cairo to finalize² details. Robert Berger at the VOA bureau in Jerusalem.
　

Members of the Palestinian security forces of Hamas take part in a training exercise in Gaza City, 14 June 2008

Under the emerging, Egyptian-mediated truce³ Palestinians would halt rocket and mortar⁴ attacks and Israel would gradually lift its crippling blockade on Gaza, which is ruled by Hamas.

But shortly before the deal was announced in Cairo, Israel carried out several air strikes on Gaza. In the deadliest attack, an Israeli aircraft fired a missile at a car, killing⁵ five gunmen from the Islamic Jihad group.

Israel frequently launches air and ground incursions in Gaza in response to daily Palestinian rocket and mortar attacks.

Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, a member of the more moderate Palestinian government in the West Bank, urged Israel not to spoil the truce.

"The continuation of the policy of incursions and the killing fields is really undermining every effort to deliver peace," he said.

Israel was reluctant to accept the truce, fearing Hamas will use it to regroup and rearm for the next round of violence. But Israeli analyst⁶ Chuck Freilich says that for now, a cease-fire is preferable to an Israeli invasion of Gaza.

"I don't think it'll last very long term," he noted⁷. "It still looks like sooner or later we will have to go into Gaza in a big way, but it would be nice to try all possibilities that might allow us to avert⁸ that."

In the second phase of the truce, Israel hopes to win the release of a captive soldier, held for two years by Hamas militants⁹ in Gaza.

1 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。

2 finalize   

v.落实，定下来

参考例句：

• Let us finalize tonight.让我们今天晚上干完
• 。At the same time,industrial designers work with engineers to finalize components and assembly.同时，工业设计师和工程师一道来完成部件和组装部分的工作。

3 truce   

n.休战，(争执，烦恼等的)缓和；v.以停战结束

参考例句：

• The hot weather gave the old man a truce from rheumatism.热天使这位老人暂时免受风湿病之苦。
• She had thought of flying out to breathe the fresh air in an interval of truce.她想跑出去呼吸一下休战期间的新鲜空气。

4 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。

5 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。

6 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。

7 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。

8 avert   

v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等)

参考例句：

• He managed to avert suspicion.他设法避嫌。
• I would do what I could to avert it.我会尽力去避免发生这种情况。

9 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。