VOA标准英语2010年-British Foreign Office: Yemen Attack '

British officials are denouncing an attack on a British embassy car carrying a senior British diplomat¹ in Yemen's capital, Sana'a.

Admitted Alistair Burt, a British Foreign Office Minister responsible for the Middle East and the Gulf², "We are obviously very distressed³ on this attack on British embassy staff, but it emphasizes the danger of the work that some of our diplomats⁴ do when they are caught up in situations such as this. But it is a despicable and entirely⁵ unwarranted attack."

The Foreign Office says five employees of the British embassy were traveling in the convoy⁶ that was hit by a rocket. One staff member was injured along with another three civilians⁷.

No one has taken responsibility for the attack, but Burt says it is likely to be the same group that carried out a suicide attack against the British ambassador in Yemen six months ago. The Yemen wing of al-Qaida claimed responsibility for that attack.

"It makes us very conscious of security and issues such as that. But our work and the work of the embassy will go on," added Burt when asked if the latest attack would alter Britain's work in Yemen.

Yemen specialist Rodney Wilson of Britain's Durham University says Britain has long been a target for terror attacks in Yemen. He says Wednesday's attack is only one incident in an ongoing⁸ story.

"Britain is a target partly because it is seen as a colonial power in the past and also they are portraying⁹ it that essentially¹⁰ it is anti-Islamic and it is an enemy of Islam, and obviously we have a lot of Islamic radicals¹¹ in Yemen," said Wilson.

He says counter-terrorism measures in Yemen have been stepped up since the end of last year. In December al-Qaida's Yemen wing claimed responsibility for a failed plot to blow up a U.S.-bound flight.

But Wilson says ridding the country of terrorists is a major challenge.

"Essentially it is a very fragmented country," explained Wilson. "Government has problems basically controlling anything beyond the capital. Also it is a very poor country. It faces many challenges in terms of its economic development. It is just a very difficult environment in which to be waging a campaign against terrorists."

Britain was not the only Western power under threat in Yemen, a gunman has shot and killed a Frenchman at the Austrian oil and gas company OMV, near Sana'a.
 

1 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

2 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

3 distressed   

痛苦的

参考例句：

• He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions. 他非常苦恼而困惑，无法回答他们的问题。
• The news of his death distressed us greatly. 他逝世的消息使我们极为悲痛。

4 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

6 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

7 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

8 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

9 portraying   

v.画像( portray的现在分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• The artist has succeeded in portraying my father to the life. 那位画家把我的父亲画得惟妙惟肖。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ding Ling was good at portraying figures through careful and refined description of human psychology. 《莎菲女士的日记》是丁玲的成名作，曾引起强烈的社会反响。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

10 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

11 radicals   

n.激进分子( radical的名词复数 )；根基；基本原理；[数学]根数

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。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The worry is that the radicals will grow more intransigent. 现在人们担忧激进分子会变得更加不妥协。 来自辞典例句