2007年VOA标准英语-UN: Janjaweed Attacks in Eastern Chad Kill 65,

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
03 April 2007

The U.N. refugee agency says Chadian military authorities report at least 65 people were killed in weekend attacks by Sudanese Janjaweed militia¹ on villages in eastern Chad. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from UNHCR headquarters in Geneva.

The attacks took place in the villages of Tiero and Marena, about 45 kilometers east of Koukou in southeastern Chad. The U.N. refugee agency says it does not know how many people are now displaced.

Refugees at Goz Amir camp (file photo)

But, preliminary reports by the UNHCR and other humanitarian² agencies indicate between 2,000 and 3,000 people have fled to the Goz Amir refugee camp near Koukou. The camp is home to more than 19,000 Sudanese refugees who have escaped fighting in Darfur.

U.N. refugee agency spokesman Ron Redmond says the extent of the damage, deaths and injuries in the latest attacks is not yet known. But he says at least 65 people were killed in the village of Tiero and the death toll³ is expected to rise.

"The testimony⁴, so far, from the victims indicates that the attack was led by "Janjaweed" militia who were repelled⁵ by local self-defense militias⁶ and some national army soldiers. There were several hours of combat reportedly. Refugees in the Goz Amir camp and residents of Koukou could hear the heavy weaponry and explosions during the fighting. The situation was reported to have been brought under control by Saturday afternoon, with the alleged⁷ Janjaweed militia fleeing in the direction of the Sudanese border," he said.

Redmond says survivors⁸ have told aid workers that while some of the attackers were on horses and camels, others were in motor vehicles, many of them equipped with heavy weaponry. "The assailants began to fire at random⁹ into the villages, and then began pursuing the fleeing population, robbing women of their possessions and shooting the men, many of whom are feared dead. The majority of the population arriving at Goz Amir is comprised of women and children," he said.

Redmond says survivors report many people are still hiding in the bush, fearful their assailants might be in the area.

An estimated 120,000 Chadians are internally displaced. The UNHCR assists many of them, as well as caring for 230,000 Sudanese refugees in eastern Chad. The agency also helps another 46,000 refugees from the Central African Republic in southern Chad.

1 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

2 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

3 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

4 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

5 repelled   

v.击退( repel的过去式和过去分词 )；使厌恶；排斥；推开

参考例句：

• They repelled the enemy. 他们击退了敌军。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The minister tremulously, but decidedly, repelled the old man's arm. 而丁梅斯代尔牧师却哆里哆嗦地断然推开了那老人的胳臂。 来自英汉文学 - 红字

6 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

7 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

8 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

9 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。