VOA标准英语2009-Aid Agencies Speed Up Humanitarian Assistance to

UN aid agencies are expanding and speeding up their relief operations to hundreds of thousands of people displaced by fighting in Pakistan's northwest province. A UNHCR charter plane carrying 120 tons of relief supplies for people fleeing the fighting landed in Pakistan earlier Tuesday.
　
A crowd of men line up to register at a refugee camp in Mardan, in northwest Pakistan, Monday, 11 May 2009

The UNHCR emergency airlift took off from Dubai early Tuesday morning. The agency says the stock of thousands of mosquito nets, plastic sheets for emergency shelters, plastic rolls and two large portable warehouses² it was carrying will be loaded onto seven trucks.

UN refugee spokesman, Ron Redmond, says the supplies will be taken immediately to UNHCR's warehouse¹ in Peshawar, the capital of the North West Frontier Province.

"This airlifted consignment³ will bolster⁴ the thousands of relief supplies such as tents and kitchen sets, jerry cans and so on that are either locally procured⁵ or from our existing stockpiles in Pakistan," Redmond said. "UNHCR is distributing this stuff alongside our non-government partners and local authorities, as part of a joint⁶ UN response. People are being registered in camps and at 38 registration⁷ centers that have now been established by the authorities with UNHCR help. We are in the process of setting up 75 such registration centers."
　
UNHCR supplies being unloaded at Islamabad Airport, 12 May 2009

Government and UN sources put the number of people displaced in the Swat Valley and other areas in northwest Pakistan at 1.3 million since last August. More than one half million have fled since the recent fighting erupted between government forces and Taliban militants⁸.

Redmond says most of the displaced people from the new influx⁹ now have been formally registered by the authorities. He says the majority are staying with relatives, friends or host communities. More than 70,000 are in camps.

World Food Program spokeswoman, Emilia Casella, says her agency is currently feeding 654,000 internally displaced people.

"We have got about enough food for 1.5 million people for the next two to three months," Casella said. "And, that is currently what the stocks are in the country and obviously with this influx, there is a great need for increased funding for all humanitarian¹⁰ services. For food so far this year, 42 million in US dollars have been received. But, we are anticipating that the cost of a food operation of this size is going to be closer to about $120 million."

Aid agencies agree the speed and scale of this crisis is posing huge challenges for everyone. They are appealing to the international community to help the growing number of Pakistanis uprooted¹¹ by the fighting.

1 warehouse   

n.仓库；vt.存入仓库

参考例句：

• We freighted the goods to the warehouse by truck.我们用卡车把货物运到仓库。
• The manager wants to clear off the old stocks in the warehouse.经理想把仓库里积压的存货处理掉。

2 warehouses   

仓库，货栈( warehouse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The whisky was taken to bonded warehouses at Port Dundee. 威士忌酒已送到邓迪港的保稅仓库。
• Row upon row of newly built warehouses line the waterfront. 江岸新建的仓库鳞次栉比。

3 consignment   

n.寄售；发货；委托；交运货物

参考例句：

• This last consignment of hosiery is quite up to standard.这批新到的针织品完全符合规格。
• We have to ask you to dispatch the consignment immediately.我们得要求你立即发送该批货物。

4 bolster   

n.枕垫；v.支持，鼓励

参考例句：

• The high interest rates helped to bolster up the economy.高利率使经济更稳健。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

5 procured   

v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条

参考例句：

• These cars are to be procured through open tender. 这些汽车要用公开招标的办法购买。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• A friend procured a position in the bank for my big brother. 一位朋友为我哥哥谋得了一个银行的职位。 来自《用法词典》

6 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

7 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

8 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

9 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

10 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。

11 uprooted   

v.把（某物）连根拔起( uproot的过去式和过去分词 )；根除；赶走；把…赶出家园

参考例句：

• Many people were uprooted from their homes by the flood. 水灾令许多人背井离乡。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The hurricane blew with such force that trees were uprooted. 飓风强烈地刮着，树都被连根拔起了。 来自《简明英汉词典》