Rebels Say Ethiopia Blocks Aid in Drought-Hit Region

A rebel group in Ethiopia's arid¹ Somali region has issued an urgent appeal for humanitarian² assistance, accusing the government of blocking aid deliveries.
The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) insurgent³ group says people and livestock⁴ are dying in Ethiopia's Somali region as drought conditions deteriorate⁵ across the Horn of Africa.
An email sent to news organizations says food and water shortages are worse in rebel strongholds because the government has imposed an embargo⁶ on the delivery of humanitarian aid.
The email accuses Ethiopia of bullying⁷ the United Nations and humanitarian agencies into silence about the severity of the crisis, and accuses international aid donors⁸ of ignoring the plight⁹ of the Ogaden people. The message says government forces are preventing UN staff from going beyond regional centers to verify aid deliveries.
Allegations that aid is being blocked could not be independently verified, as access to the troubled region is restricted. Phone calls to government spokesmen Friday seeking comment were not answered.
But humanitarian groups reacted sharply to the ONLF allegations. UN World Food Program spokeswoman in Ethiopia, Susannah Nicol, says safeguards are in place to ensure aid reaches the neediest.
"There have been security incidents in the past," said Nicol. "Therefore, what we're trying to do is make sure the food is directed towards the areas and the most vulnerable people. WFP has expanded its system of monitoring. So we are confident the food is getting through to those who most need it. Any allegations that food is not reaching people are taken very seriously and investigated".
Vincent Lelei, head of the UN humanitarian agency OCHA office in Ethiopia says aid groups have a clear picture of conditions in the drought-affected region.
"I'm not aware of the document referred to as having been mentioned by an organization named ONLF," said Lelei. "What I know is that the humanitarian community is aware of the drought and has been working with the government very intensively. We have been trucking water in several places. We have done assessments¹⁰ in the field on the immediate¹¹ life-saving interventions¹² required."
The ONLF has been fighting for more than 25 years for the Somali region's independence from Ethiopia.  Ethiopia considers the ONLF a terrorist organization with ties to the Muslim extremist group al-Shabab in neighboring Somalia, which in turn has links with al-Qaida.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi last week said he sees Muslim extremism as the biggest threat to stability in the Horn of Africa.

1 arid   

adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的

参考例句：

• These trees will shield off arid winds and protect the fields.这些树能挡住旱风,保护农田。
• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。

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 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

4 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

5 deteriorate   

v.变坏；恶化；退化

参考例句：

• Do you think relations between China and Japan will continue to deteriorate?你认为中日关系会继续恶化吗？
• He held that this would only cause the situation to deteriorate further.他认为，这只会使局势更加恶化。

6 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

7 bullying   

v.恐吓，威逼( bully的现在分词 )；豪；跋扈

参考例句：

• Many cases of bullying go unreported . 很多恐吓案件都没有人告发。
• All cases of bullying will be severely dealt with. 所有以大欺小的情况都将受到严肃处理。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 plight   

n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定

参考例句：

• The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
• She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。

10 assessments   

n.评估( assessment的名词复数 )；评价；（应偿付金额的）估定；（为征税对财产所作的）估价

参考例句：

• He was shrewd in his personal assessments. 他总能对人作出精明的评价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Surveys show about two-thirds use such assessments, while half employ personality tests. 调查表明，约有三分之二的公司采用了这种测评；而一半的公司则采用工作人员个人品质测试。 来自百科语句

11 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

12 interventions   

n.介入，干涉，干预( intervention的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Economic analysis of government interventions deserves detailed discussion. 政府对经济的干预应该给予充分的论述。 来自辞典例句
• The judge's frequent interventions made a mockery of justice. 法官的屡屡干预是对正义的践踏。 来自互联网