VOA标准英语2012--Syrian University Town Could Hold Key to End to Conflict

Syrian University Town Could Hold Key to End to Conflict

Aleppo is a major port close to Turkey. It's Syria's economic center. Here, the business elite¹ support the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
"We trust that he's going to do some good stuff to this country and to the people," said interior designer Rashed al-Tabshi. "He likes his people."
Many in Aleppo show their love for Mr. Assad at pro-government rallies.
But across town, a different scene: anti-government protests at Aleppo University, Syria's second largest institute of higher learning.
Grey uniformed security forces monitor the campus and break up the protests, but more demonstrations² erupt elsewhere.
Sasha Ghosh-Siminoff attended Aleppo University and now lives in the U.S.
"In terms of students, they are just stubborn," he said. "They go out from their schools, whether it's the department of arts and sciences or on the residential³ campuses they live in, they can still organize and coordinate⁴."
In the city, Aleppo residents complain about blackouts and scarce fuel for their homes and cars. This man says he feels trapped in his home. We spoke⁵ with him via Skype.
"You can't trust anybody at all on the streets on Aleppo or any other city in Syria," he said.
The Syrian violence is in its 11th month, with no sign of it ending. Many people say the turning point could be here, in the government stronghold of Aleppo. Our contact via Skype has this to say:
“If the regime falls or the revolution wins, it doesn’t matter for me," he said. "What I need is the peace to go in the street without any restriction⁶.”
But for now, most Syrians have little peace.

1 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

2 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

3 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

4 coordinate   

adj.同等的，协调的；n.同等者；vt.协作，协调

参考例句：

• You must coordinate what you said with what you did.你必须使你的言行一致。
• Maybe we can coordinate the relation of them.或许我们可以调和他们之间的关系。

5 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。

6 restriction   

n.限制，约束

参考例句：

• The park is open to the public without restriction.这个公园对公众开放，没有任何限制。
• The 30 mph speed restriction applies in all built-up areas.每小时限速30英里适用于所有建筑物聚集区。