week 6 -伊拉克ISIS-Iraq

Iraq wins promises of support against Islamic State

Tue, Sep 16, 2014

 AFP, PARIS

The world’s top diplomats yesterday pledged to support Iraq in its fight against Islamic State [IS] militants by “any means necessary,” including “appropriate military assistance”, as leaders stressed the urgency of the crisis.

Representatives from about 30 countries and international organizations, including the US, Russia and China, gathered in Paris as the brutal beheading over the weekend of a third Western hostage focused participants’ minds.

    The pledge came as US Secretary of State John Kerry stepped up efforts to forge a broad anti-jihadist coalition.

    In a joint statement issued after the talks, the diplomats vowed to support Baghdad “by any means necessary, including appropriate military assistance, in line with the needs expressed by the Iraqi authorities, in accordance with international law and without jeopardizing civilian security.”

    They stressed militants of the Islamic State, previously known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, were “a threat not only to Iraq, but also to the entire international community” and underscored the “urgent need” to remove them from Iraq, where they control about 40 percent of its territory.

    However, the final statement made no mention of Syria, where the extremists hold one-quarter of the country and where the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad still had friends around the Paris conference table, including Russia.

    Opening the conference, French President Francois Hollande emphasized there was “no time to lose” in the fight against the jihadists.

    “The fight of the Iraqis against terrorism is our fight as well,” Hollande said, urging “clear, loyal and strong” global support for Baghdad.

    Iraqi President Fuad Masum also stressed the urgency of the crisis, saying there was a risk the militants could overrun more countries in the region.

    “We are still asking for regular aerial operations against terrorist sites. We have to pursue them wherever they are. We need to dry up their sources of finance,” he said.

    As if to underscore the urgency of the campaign, French Minister of Defense Jean-Yves Le Drian announced just hours ahead of the conference it was joining Britain in carrying out reconnaissance flights in support of the US air campaign against the jihadists.

    Shortly afterward, two French Rafale fighter jets took off from the al-Dhafra base in the United Arab Emirates, reporters said.

    The Paris conference was one of a series of diplomatic gatherings in the run-up to a UN General Assembly later this week.

    German Minister of Foreign Affairs Frank-Walter Steinmeier said meetings would come “thick and fast” in the coming days and his French counterpart, Laurent Fabius, said there would soon be a conference on Islamic State funding organized by Bahrain.

    While there was no mention of Syria in the final statement, Hollande said the international community “needs to find a durable solution in the place where the [IS] movement was born. In Syria.”

    “The chaos is benefiting the terrorists. We therefore need to support those who can negotiate and make the required compromises to secure the future of Syria,” Hollande said. “They are the forces of the democratic opposition. They need to be backed by all means.”

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2014/09/16/2003599814

Structure of the Lead：

  WHO-Representatives from about 30 countries and international organizations

  WHEN-yesterday

  WHAT-support Iraq in its fight against Islamic State [IS] militants

  WHY-a threat not only to Iraq, but also to the entire international community

  WHERE-Iraq

  HOW-any means necessary,” including “appropriate military assistance

Keywords：

   1. appropriate : 適當的

   2. Representatives : 代表

   3. beheading : 斬首

   4. hostage : 人質

   5. stepped up : 加緊

   6. anti-jihadist coalition : 反聖戰聯盟

   7. overrun : 侵占

   8. reconnaissance flights : 偵察飛行

   9. The chaos : 混亂

 10. be backed : 支持