Afghanistan's top security officials warned they were unable to guarantee the security of this week's elections, despite efforts to buy off Taliban insurgents.

阿富汗最高安全官员警告，尽管努力笼络塔利班叛乱分子，但他们无法在本周选举期间保障治安。

Abdul Rahim Wardak, the defence minister, said yesterday that the security forces faced a formidable challenge in protecting Thursday's presidential and provincial elections, but the nation was resolved to go to the polls regardless of the threat from Islamist militants.

国防部长阿卜杜勒•拉希姆•瓦尔达克(Abdul Rahim Wardak)昨日表示，在保护周四的总统及省长选举方面，安全部队面临着艰巨的挑战，但阿富汗人民决心不顾伊斯兰武装分子的威胁，照样去投票站投票。

“To be 100 per cent sure that you can defend against the type of enemy you are dealing with, which has no respect for human dignity, will be very difficult,” Mr Wardak said.

瓦尔达克表示：“要防备那种毫不尊重人类尊严的敌人，很难有百分百的把握。”

“There is no doubt that the security forces of the International Security Assistance Forces and those of Afghanistan are not enough to secure this much area.”

“毫无疑问，国际安全援助部队(ISAF)和阿富汗安全部队不足以在这样广大的国土上维持治安。”

The election is proving a much tighter race than had been expected with Abdullah Abdullah, a former foreign minister, staging a real challenge to President Hamid Karzai, who has been leading in the polls.

此次竞选比许多人预期的更为激烈，前外交部长阿卜杜拉•阿卜杜拉(Abdullah Abdullah)对总统哈米德•卡尔扎伊(Hamid Karzai)发起了真正的挑战，后者在民调中领先。

Mr Wardak's comments came after a suicide bomb attack outside the Nato headquarters in Kabul on Saturday intended to undermine confidence in the safety of about 6,500 polling stations across the country.

瓦尔达克发表上述言论前，北约驻喀布尔总部门外上周六发生一起自杀式炸弹袭击，意在破坏人们对全国约6500个投票站安全的信心。

The attack struck Kabul's diplomatic enclave in the heart of the city. It was aimed at one of the most high-profile international targets – the headquarters of ISAF – as people reported for work. The blast, the first suicide bomb attack in the capital for eight months, killed eight people and injured close to 100.

袭击发生在喀布尔市中心的外交使领馆区，目标对准ISAF总部这个最显赫的海外目标之一。当时人们正要上班。这是阿富汗首都8个月来发生的首起自杀式炸弹袭击，导致8人死亡，近100人受伤。

The attack shattered an eerie peace in Kabul, that had held in the run-up to the election. The calm had led many to believe that Taliban insurgents had decided to spare the election a wave of a violence.

袭击打破了喀布尔在选举前夕怪异的平静。由于这种平静，许多人曾以为，塔利班叛乱分子已决定不在选举期间制造一波暴力事件。

译者/岱嵩