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Security in Iraq Is it getting worse again? Jun 25th 2009 | BAGHDAD
From The Economist print edition As American troops prepare to leave all the towns, Iraqis are getting nervous BARACK OBAMA’s administration has promised(承诺) to withdraw all American troops from all of Iraq’s towns by the end of this month. As the deadline looms（朦胧出现,比begins 要确切）, people are again asking whether Iraq’s forces will be able to cope (deal with)on their own. On cue, a fresh bout （新一轮，看看这个词用的）of violence has erupted. On June 20th, a huge(big) lorry bomb exploded in Taza, a Turkmen town just south of the disputed city of Kirkuk, killing at least 70 people. Two days later at least seven bombs went off(exploded) in and around Baghdad, including a roadside blast(bomb), a car bomb and a suicide attack, killing some 30 people altogether(all). And on June 24th another big bomb killed at least 70 people in Baghdad, perhaps the single (only) deadliest attack in Iraq this year. The insurgents, knowing that the Americans are poised (看这个准备表达，be ready/prepared to)to pull out(withdraw), are aiming to( 看这个意图表达，intending to) make Iraq as unstable as ever. They have also staged（planed） some spectacular assassinations(暗杀行动)that have threatened to restart a cycle of sectarian reprisals(宗派报复). Earlier this month the head of the main Sunni bloc in parliament, Harith al-Obeidi, a noted campaigner for human rights, was gunned down by a teenager in a Baghdad mosque after he had led Friday prayers.（星期五做礼拜） In Mosul, the biggest city of the north, where the coach of Iraq’s karate team was recently shot dead, bombings are still going on, though at a reduced rate. Yet, despite this nerve-racking spasm, the recorded figures suggest that the violence is still in retreat. Fewer civilians were killed in May than in any month since 2003. Both Iraqi and American officials had predicted a surge( a sudden increase,看看这个比单纯的increase 要内涵丰富)in attacks as the deadline（最后期限） for withdrawal neared（越来越近，这个词我习惯，close？不能替）. The prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, told Iraqis not to be dismayed（disappointed, desperate） by violence here and there(这个词我也喜欢，到处). The country’s own forces, he insisted, could maintain security, as they already were. Besides（in addition，moreover）, American tanks and armies were no use（useless） in what had become a counter-insurgency intelligence game, which the Iraqis were better equipped to play than were the Americans(看这个倒装). “We’re absolutely certain（看这个完全保证，比quite sure好吧） the withdrawal will not make our security worse,” said Mr Maliki. In any event（anyhow）, he said, the withdrawal of American troops from the towns would be a “great victory” for Iraq. In fact American troops have already withdrawn from nearly all the towns—and have rarely been seen in them of late. Many joint American-Iraqi security posts(驻地) have been dismantled. There will be no more routine American patrols, rare though they have already become. The Americans will, however, remain in bases（基地跟posts） nearby, on call in case（除非。。待命） Iraqi forces hit trouble(遇到麻烦). And in some places, especially in Mosul, where efforts to suppress（加强镇压力度，看别人侧重的是哪里）
the insurgency have been intensifying, the definition of city limits is being elastically interpreted, to let the main American base stay where it is, on the city’s edge. But the Iraqis are slowly realising that Mr Obama really does（这是我一贯用的强调手法） intend to remove the bulk of his troops before 2011. So they may at last be starting to focus on passing long-delayed bits of important nation-building legislation, such as an oil-and-gas law, constitutional amendments, and even a law governing（规范） elections. Without a modicum of cohesion at the heart of government, how can Iraq’s security forces stick together（团结起来） in the face of sectarian or ethnic tension? Iraqis know that establishing a more cohesive and broader-based government is at least as important as beefing （complaining）up the Iraqi security forces. A crucial general election is due (expected to happen)in January—and everybody knows that the Americans want to witness a peaceful poll leading to a stable government before they can withdraw completely. So there is a fresh ferment of political horse-trading and alliance-testing. Mr Maliki is trying to buff up(polish) his image as the strongman who can provide law and order. He is exploring (looking for) the possibility of new ties across sectarian divisions as well as sounding out possible partners for a grand Shia coalition similar to the one that won last time.（难道前面是horse-trading shady businessman image? ）Even the “Bands of the Righteous”, an offshoot of the Shia militia movement led by a radical cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr, may want to take part in peaceful politics. As a gesture of goodwill, it released the bodies of two long-dead British hostages who had been kidnapped two years ago. (这个事alliance-testing?) Yet, whether the Americans stay or leave, Iraq still suffers from its worst failing. There is still no party or leader that can reach across the country’s divisions and appeal to Iraqis of every ethnic and sectarian hue. 伊拉克仍然没有伟大的领袖来实现统一。 | 
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楼主: 米丽水
发表于 2009-6-21 16:56:41
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