10-30-06

美將領稱北韓會再次核試 (US General Expects North Korea to Conduct Second Nuclear Test)

美國駐南韓軍隊指揮官說，他預計北韓會在“將來某個時候”進行第二次核子試驗。貝爾將軍星期一在首爾說，平壤很可能會再次試爆核裝置，繼續進行發展“挑釁性武器”的計劃。

北韓在10月9日進行了一次地下核子試驗。平壤表示，北韓需要擁有核武器來加強對美國威脅的防禦能力。貝爾將軍說，北韓的核子試驗沒有改變北韓半島的力量平衡，如果北韓攻擊南韓，美國和南韓的軍事力量將能很快擊敗北韓的侵略。不過他說，聯軍不會向北韓發動先發制人的攻擊。

The commander of U.S. forces in South Korea says he expects North Korea to conduct a second nuclear test "sometime in the future." General Burwell Bell said in Seoul Monday that Pyongyang likely will detonate another nuclear device as part of its program to develop what he called "provocative weapons."

North Korea set off an underground nuclear device October ninth. Pyongyang says it needs nuclear weapons to bolster its defenses against U.S. threats. General Bell says North Korea's nuclear test did not change the balance of power on the Korean peninsula, and that if North Korea attacks the South, U.S. and South Korean forces would quickly defeat the aggression. But he said the the allied forces would not conduct a pre-emptive strike against North Korea.

巴軍打死八十激進分子嫌疑人 (Pakistani Troops Kill 80 Suspected Militants)

巴基斯坦軍方說，它的攻擊直升機在與阿富汗交界的地方摧毀了一個懷疑是恐怖分子訓練基地的設施，打死了80名激進分子嫌疑人。巴基斯坦軍方首席發言人說，星期一早上在巴蕉爾部落地區的襲擊目標是一所激進分子受訓的伊斯蘭學校。這所伊斯蘭學校是一名被巴基斯坦通緝的穆斯林神職人員經營的。這名穆斯林神職人員因與恐怖活動有關聯和庇護基地恐怖分子在巴基斯坦受到通緝。軍方發言人否認有關空襲炸死了無辜平民的說法。

巴基斯坦這一邊境地區靠近一座今年早些時候被駐阿富汗美軍襲擊過的村莊。美軍那次襲擊行動的目的是消滅基地組織的二號人物，不過他當時並沒有在村子裏。巴基斯坦軍隊星期一的襲擊行動之前，這個地區在星期六時曾經舉行過集會，參加集會的數千名激進分子呼喊反美口號。

Pakistan's military says its helicopter gunships have destroyed a suspected terrorist training facility near the border with Afghanistan, killing up to 80 militants. The chief military spokesman says Monday's early-morning raid in the Bajaur tribal region targeted an Islamic school where militants were being trained. The Islamic school was operated by a Muslim cleric wanted in Pakistan for terrorist activities and for providing refuge to al-Qaida militants. The spokesman dismissed claims that the air strike killed innocent civilians.

The same Pakistani border area is close to a village attacked earlier this year by U.S. forces based in Afghanistan. That airstrike was aimed at killing al-Qaida's second-in-command, but he was not present at the time. Monday's assault by Pakistani forces follows a rally in the same area on Saturday, by thousands of militants shouting anti-American slogans.