【764-765】美国移民机构设立的假大学&有报道称：阿富汗部队人数随着风险的增加而减少

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81 Bob Dylan--Like a rolling stone

更多歌曲：《最适合学习英语的英文歌曲80首》 

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AS IT IS

Report: Afghan Forces Number Shrinking as Risks Rise

January 31, 2019

A policeman stands guard near the site of a deadly suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, June 11, 2018. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

The United States is pushing for peace in Afghanistan. But a new report says Afghan government security forces are shrinking. It also warns that security risks across the country are growing, and the Taliban remains strong.

In other words, little has changed over the past year, even with an increase in U.S. air power. The situation in Afghanistan was termed a “stalemate,” with no side likely able to win a clear military victory.

The report comes from a group known as the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction. The findings were presented to U.S. lawmakers on Thursday.

News reports say President Donald Trump is considering withdrawing as many as half of the 14,000 U.S. forces in Afghanistan. U.S. forces invaded the country more than 17 years ago, after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

The U.S. Department of Defense claims that military pressure on the Taliban is increasing. Last year, the U.S. military sharply increased bombing in support of Afghan government forces. The military also increased its training of Afghan troops. Yet the Afghan military was not able to expand its control of the country last year.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has noted the sacrifices his troops are making in fighting the Taliban. He reportedly said at the World Economic Forum last week that 45,000 Afghan security forces had died since September 2014.

The heavy losses help explain why numbers of Afghan military and police forces are not at full strength.

U.S. military officials have repeatedly said they are making progress toward supporting the Afghan government to defend its own people. But the U.S. special representative to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalizad, said in recent days the U.S. and the Taliban agreed at least to the idea of peace. The Afghan government has yet to express support for the idea.

For his part, President Trump has said many times he is not sure continuing the war is wise. Afghan officials hope Trump will say what he is planning to do when he speaks to Congress and the American people in the yearly State of the Union next week.

I’m Caty Weaver.

The Associated Press (AP) reported this story. Kelly Jean Kelly adapted the story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

_____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

stalemate – n. standstill; a lack of movement or progress

• AS IT IS

• Fake University Set Up By US Immigration Agents

• January 31, 2019

• A screenshot of the University of Farmington website

• The University of Farmington described itself on its website as a school for science and business that dates back to the 1950s. The school, near the city of Detroit, Michigan, said it “combines traditional instruction and distance learning” and offers “flexible class schedules.”

• But the University of Farmington had no instruction, no classes and no teachers at all. Instead, the Detroit Free Press reports, the school was a fake university meant to “target foreign students who wanted to stay in the U.S.” illegally. It was set up by the Department of Homeland Security, a U.S. government agency that oversees immigration.

• A federal grand jury in Detroit has charged eight people in connection to the investigation. All eight people worked as student recruiters for the university. Most are from India.

• The charges were filed earlier this year and made public Wednesday. The charging documents say recruiters “conspired with each other” to permit over 600 foreign citizens to illegally stay in the country. The recruiters reportedly took in over $250,000 in profits from 2017 to early this year.

• The charges say the recruiters knew the university was fake. But what they did not know was that the school was part of a secret operation by agents with Homeland Security.

• The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, is part of the Homeland Security department. In a statement Wednesday, ICE said the agents had been carrying out the investigation since 2015.

• ICE says the recruiters and the foreign students “knew that the school had no instructors or actual classes.” The students who registered at the fake university were part of a student visa program called CPT (Curricular Practical Training). The program permits international students to work in the United States.

• U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider said in a statement, “We are all aware that international students can be a valuable asset to our country, but as this case shows, the well-intended international student visa program can also be...abused.”

• Also on Wednesday, federal agents arrested about 100 students who registered for classes at the University of Farmington. Hundreds of others face possible arrest. The students face charges related to immigration violation and could be forced to leave the country, The Detroit News reported.

• Many of the students are from an Indian ethnic group that speaks the Telugu language. On its Facebook page, the American Telugu Association said students should understand the risks of possible fake agents who “promise illegal ways to stay in USA through admissions in unaccredited colleges and universities.”

• The association planned a live video program Thursday to help explain the issues to community members.

• I’m Jonathan Evans.

• Ashley Thompson adapted this story based on reports by the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News.

• Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

• ______________________________________________________________

• Words in This Story

• schedule - n. a written or printed list of things and the times when they will be done

• fake - adj. not true or real

• jury - n. a group of people who are members of the public and are chosen to make a decision in a legal case

• recruiter - n. a person who finds suitable people and get them to join a company, an organization, the armed forces, etc.

• conspire - v. to secretly plan with someone to do something that is harmful or illegal

• asset - n. valuable person or thing

• well-intended - adj. well-meaning

• unaccredited - adj. used to describe something that is not good enough to be given official approval

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