09-12-06

敘利亞挫敗對大馬士革美國大使館襲擊 (Syria Repels Attack on US Embassy in Damascus)

敘利亞政府說，保安部隊打死3名恐怖份子，打傷一名。這些人星期二早上在駐大馬士革的美國大使館外面試圖引爆一枚汽車炸彈。敘利亞官方媒體報導說，還有一名敘利亞保安衛兵喪生，至少11名旁觀者受傷，其中有一名中國外交官。沒有美國人受傷。

美國國務卿賴斯感謝敘利亞挫敗這起襲擊。她表示，確定進行這起襲擊的是什麼人目前還為時過早。

目擊者說，高呼伊斯蘭口號的槍手向大使館院墻內投擲手榴彈。他們還看到黑煙升向天空，聽到美國大使館區周圍傳來激烈的槍聲和爆炸聲。

The Syrian government says security forces killed three terrorists and wounded a fourth as they tried to detonate a car bomb outside the U.S. embassy in Damascus early Tuesday. State media report that one Syrian security guard was killed and at least 11 bystanders were injured, including a Chinese diplomat. No Americans were hurt.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice thanked Syria for repelling the attack. She said it is too early to say who was responsible for the assault.

Witnesses say the gunmen shouted Islamic slogans as they tried to throw grenades over the embassy compound's walls. They describe black smoke rising into the sky and the sound of heavy gunfire and explosions echoing from the area around the embassy.

布希總統稱美國比以往更安全 (President Bush Says America Is Safer)

美國總統布希說，美國比2001年9月11號發生恐怖襲擊時更加安全，但是他說，不能完全排除美國遭到新的攻擊。在9/11恐怖襲擊5週年之際，布希星期一晚間向全國發表講話。布希說，敵人無情地殺戮、反對自由和異己。他說，驅動敵人的是對伊斯蘭的曲解。

布希還為發動伊拉克戰爭提出辯護，說薩達姆政權對全世界構成的威脅不容忽視。布希說，美國的安全取決於巴格達街頭戰鬥的結果。

不過，民主黨資深參議員肯尼迪不同意布希總統的看法。他指責布希利用全國悼念9/11死難者的機會尋求對伊拉克戰爭的支援，而薩達姆與5年前的恐怖襲擊毫無牽連。

President Bush says the United States is safer now than when terrorists attacked on September 11th 2001. But he says the nation is not immune from new attacks. Mr. Bush spoke to the nation on Monday on the fifth anniversary of the attacks. He said the enemy kills without mercy and opposes freedom and dissent. He said the enemy is driven by what he called a perverted vision of Islam.

Mr. Bush also defended the war in Iraq. He said the regime of Saddam Hussein posed a threat that the world could not ignore. He said the safety of the United States depends on the outcome of the battle in the streets of Baghdad.

But senior member of the opposition Democractic Party Senator Edward Kennedy disagreed with the President. Senator Edward Kennedy accused Mr. Bush of using a national day of mourning to seek support for the war in Iraq, even though Saddam Hussein had no involvement in the attacks five years ago.