VOA标准英语2009年-WFP Compound in Somalia Attacked by 'Rogue

The United Nation's World Food Program says rogue¹ members of Somalia's extremist al-Shabab group attempted to raid its compound late Sunday in the Somali town of Wajid, about 300 kilometers northwest of Mogadishu.

World Food Program spokesman, Peter Smerdon, tells VOA that as many as 10 heavily-armed gunmen approached the WFP compound in Wajid shortly before midnight Sunday.

Smerdon says they ordered the security guards to open the gate. When the guards refused, the gunmen opened fire.

"In the ensuing gun battle, which lasted about 15 minutes, three of the gunmen were killed and one was seriously wounded. One guard was slightly wounded. The attackers were rogue elements of al-Shabab from outside Wajid and they subsequently left Wajid after the assault on the compound," he said.
　
Somali Islamist militants² carry their weapons as they patrol the streets of northern Mogadishu (File)

Smerdon says it is likely the gunmen had intended to kidnap foreign aid workers staying at the compound. Wajid, in Somalia's northwestern Bakool region, is in an area controlled by al-Shabab, but Smerdon says there is no evidence to suggest that al-Shabab authorities had ordered the attack.

Nine international U.N. staff, seven from WFP and two from other U.N. agencies, have been temporarily evacuated³ to Nairobi. WFP says it will continue its supplementary⁴ feeding programs in the region through local non-governmental organization partners.

Aid workers have been frequent targets of kidnappings and assassinations⁵ during a two-year, al-Shabab-led insurgency⁶ against the country's U.N.-backed transitional government in Mogadishu. Eight aid workers have been killed in Somalia this year and 13 remain in captivity⁷.

Meanwhile, south of Wajid in the Gedo region, forces loyal to the armed Sufi Muslim group, Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a say they captured the town of Bulo Hawa from al-Shabab militants early Monday.

Bulo Hawo is near the border from the Kenyan town of Mandera, and like much of southern Somalia, it had been under the control of al-Shabab, an extremist group with ties to al-Qaida and designated as a terrorist organization by the United States.

A spokesman for Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a, Yusuf al-Ashari, described the takeover of Bulo Hawa as a victory for all Somalis, who reject al-Shabab's extremism.

The Sufi cleric says Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a will continue its holy war against al-Shabab until all innocent Muslims are free from what he termed "the evil group."

Al-Shabab leaders in the southern city of Kismayo immediately called on al-Shabab fighters to mobilize in Gedo and defend the towns from Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a attacks. Al-Shabab has repeatedly accused Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a of being militarily backed by neighboring Ethiopia, a charge the Sufi group denies.

Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a took up arms last December after al-Shabab members declared Sufism to be a heretical version of Islam and desecrated⁸ the graves of Sufi clerics in southern Somalia. Since then, al-Shabab has suffered several military setbacks at the hands of Ahlu-Sunna Wal-Jama'a in central and south-central Somalia.

1 rogue   

n.流氓；v.游手好闲

参考例句：

• The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
• They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。

2 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。

3 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

4 supplementary   

adj.补充的，附加的

参考例句：

• There is a supplementary water supply in case the rain supply fails.万一主水源断了，我们另外有供水的地方。
• A supplementary volume has been published containing the index.附有索引的增补卷已经出版。

5 assassinations   

n.暗杀( assassination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Most anarchist assassinations were bungled because of haste or spontaneity, in his view. 在他看来，无政府主义者搞的许多刺杀都没成功就是因为匆忙和自发行动。 来自辞典例句
• Assassinations by Israelis of alleged terrorists habitually kill nearby women and children. 在以色列，自称恐怖分子的炸弹自杀者杀害靠近自己的以色列妇女和儿童。 来自互联网

6 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

7 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。

8 desecrated   

毁坏或亵渎( desecrate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The invading army desecrated this holy place when they camped here. 侵略军在这块圣地上扎营就是对这块圣地的亵渎。
• She shouldn't have desecrated the picture of a religious leader. 她不该亵渎宗教领袖的画像。