VOA标准英语2008年-US Media: Israel Appears to Practice Iran Attac

By Robert Berger
Jerusalem
20 June 2008

Israel is reported to have carried out a large military exercise that could have been practice for an attack against Iran's nuclear facilities. Officials in Israel have refused to confirm or deny the report which appeared in The New York Times. Robert Berger reports from the VOA bureau in Jerusalem.
　

Details of Israeli Air Force F-15 jets (file photo)

The New York Times reported Friday that more than 100 Israeli F-15 and F-16 warplanes staged a maneuver¹ over the Mediterranean² and Greece in the first week of June. The warplanes flew more than 1,400 kilometers, about the distance from Israel to Iran's nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz. Quoting U.S. officials, the report said the exercise included refueling in midair and helicopters capable of rescuing downed pilots.

According to The Times, the Israeli military would only say that the air force "regularly trains for various missions in order to confront and meet the challenges posed by the threats facing Israel."

Israel and the United States believe Iran is developing nuclear weapons, though Tehran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. The Iranian president has threatened to wipe the Jewish state "off the map," and that has raised speculation³ about an Israeli pre-emptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities.

"It's a very plausible⁴ scenario," said Israeli analyst⁵ Alon Pinkas. "And I would not rule a military strike against Iran, I would not rule it out."

The Israeli air force destroyed Iraq's nuclear reactor⁶ in 1981. But that was just one site, and Pinkas says the situation in Iran is much more complicated.

"In terms of the military capabilities⁷, I think Israel is limited in its ability to hit and strike effectively the entire array of Iran's nuclear program, because it is defused, it is decentralized, it is clandestine⁸ and it is underground," he said.

The Times quoted an anonymous⁹ Pentagon official as saying that the purpose of the exercise was two-fold: to hone the air force's abilities and to demonstrate to the U.S. and others that Israel might take action on its own if international sanctions against Iran fail.

It is seen as a last resort, but Israeli officials say there is a military option.

1 maneuver   

n.策略[pl.]演习；v.(巧妙)控制；用策略

参考例句：

• All the fighters landed safely on the airport after the military maneuver.在军事演习后，所有战斗机都安全降落在机场上。
• I did get her attention with this maneuver.我用这个策略确实引起了她的注意。

2 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

3 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

4 plausible   

adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的

参考例句：

• His story sounded plausible.他说的那番话似乎是真实的。
• Her story sounded perfectly plausible.她的说辞听起来言之有理。

5 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。

6 reactor   

n.反应器；反应堆

参考例句：

• The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.原子反应堆发出大量的热能。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules.在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

7 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

8 clandestine   

adj.秘密的，暗中从事的

参考例句：

• She is the director of clandestine operations of the CIA.她是中央情报局秘密行动的负责人。
• The early Christians held clandestine meetings in caves.早期的基督徒在洞穴中秘密聚会。

9 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。