VOA标准英语2009年-Sufi Clerics in Somalia Support Unity Governmen

Sufi clerics in Somalia have declared their support for the new unity¹ government led by a moderate Islamist. The declaration is raising the possibility of a wider sectarian war between adherents² of the Sufi order and the powerful al-Shabab group in Somalia.
　
President of Somalia Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, arrives at the UN compound in in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 01 Feb 2009

Sufi clerics, meeting this week in the Somali capital Mogadishu, say they fully³ support the newly-elected president of Somalia, moderate Islamist Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, and the efforts he is making to bring peace to the long-suffering country.

The clerics spoke⁴ Wednesday through a group of adherents of the Sufi order, who recently took up arms against al-Shabab in Somalia. The spokesman for Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a, Sheik Abduqadir Mohamed Soomow, says the international community should be thanked for sponsoring last year's peace talks in Djibouti. The talks paved the way for the Ethiopian troop withdrawal⁵ from Somalia in January and allowed Sheik Sharif's Islamist-led opposition⁶ group to join the government.

The cleric says Sufi scholars are calling on all Somalis to support the national unity government, which they hope will rule according to Islamic law and gain the support of the international community.

Sufism, a mystic form of Islam, has centuries old roots in Somalia but is considered heretical by conservative factions⁷ of Islam, especially Salafism and Wahhabism. Since the fall of Somalia's last functioning government in 1991, Salafism and Wahhabism, taught in many Saudi-run mosques⁸ and religious schools in Mogadishu and elsewhere, have gained a following among many young Somalis.

These Somalis make up the bulk of the al-Shabab, a militant⁹ group ideologically¹⁰ aligned¹¹ with al-Qaida and vehemently¹² opposed to Sheik Sharif's new western-backed government. Al-Shabab once functioned as the military wing of the Islamic Courts Union, an Islamist movement led by Sheik Sharif before he and other leaders were ousted¹³ from power by Ethiopia in late 2006.

Al-Shabab grew powerful as an anti-Ethiopian insurgent¹⁴ group and took control of many parts of central and southern Somalia. In recent weeks, Sheik Sharif has reached out to the group, urging the leaders to reject extremism and to participate in rebuilding the country.

Somalia observer for the International Crisis Group, Rashid Abdi, says although al-Shabab gained many recruits as an anti-Ethiopian insurgent group, many Somalis are now rejecting its militant brand of Islam in favor of Sheik Sharif's call for reconciliation¹⁵.

"It is undeniable that there is a great deal of opposition building against al-Shabab, especially from the traditional Muslim groups in Somalia," said Abdi. "There is a mobilization of various groupings of orthodox Sunni Muslims all over Somalia to form a broad front against al-Shabab."

Recently, Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a scored military victories over al-Shabab in the central Somali Galgadud region, prompting fears that a wider conflict could erupt between the two groups. Abdi says if Sheik Sharif fails to bring al-Shabab to the negotiating table, a war may have to be fought to determine which version of Islam Somalis will embrace.

"If these attempts at reconciliation collapse¹⁶, then the prospect¹⁷ of a sectarian war happening in Somalia is real and that is definitely something to worry about," he said.

Sheik Sharif has never spoken out against the Salafist-Wahhabist branches of Islam. But he is believed to be sympathetic to Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a and its cause.

1 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

2 adherents   

n.支持者，拥护者( adherent的名词复数 )；党羽；徒子徒孙

参考例句：

• He is a leader with many adherents. 他是个有众多追随者的领袖。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The proposal is gaining more and more adherents. 该建议得到越来越多的支持者。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 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。

6 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

7 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

8 mosques   

清真寺； 伊斯兰教寺院，清真寺； 清真寺，伊斯兰教寺院( mosque的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why make us believe that this tunnel runs underneath the mosques? 为什么要让我们相信这条隧洞是在清真寺下？
• The city's three biggest mosques, long fallen into disrepair, have been renovated. 城里最大的三座清真寺，过去年久失修，现在已经修复。

9 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。

10 ideologically   

adv. 意识形态上地，思想上地

参考例句：

• Ideologically, they have many differences. 在思想意识上，他们之间有许多不同之处。
• He has slipped back ideologically. 他思想退步了。

11 aligned   

adj.对齐的，均衡的

参考例句：

• Make sure the shelf is aligned with the top of the cupboard.务必使搁架与橱柜顶端对齐。

12 vehemently   

adv. 热烈地

参考例句：

• He argued with his wife so vehemently that he talked himself hoarse. 他和妻子争论得很激烈，以致讲话的声音都嘶哑了。
• Both women vehemently deny the charges against them. 两名妇女都激烈地否认了对她们的指控。

13 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

14 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

15 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

16 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

17 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。