VOA标准英语2013--Mali Security Measures Hinder Humanitarian Access to Civilians

 

Mali Security Measures Hinder Humanitarian¹ Access to Civilians²

Hannatou Bocoum made it to Bamako Saturday, 10 days after her town, Konna, became the first to fall to Islamist rebels in this most recent offensive. The town was later bombed by the French.

"There was bombing everywhere and so much heavy gunfire that it made the houses shake. It was difficult to leave….Many residents went across the river. After three days, I went to a nearby village. I waited there for three more days. The military would not let people out towards Mopti because they said rebels had used public transport to get in to Konna. After three more days, I was able to convince the military to take me to Mopti on a moto," Bocoum said.

Military checkpoints litter the road south to Bamako. The army has retaken Konna but has closed roads heading north from Mopti into rebel-held territory, fearing infiltration³.

Moctar Mariko of the Malian Association for Human Rights says both sides must open a humanitarian corridor to allow aid to come in and people to get out.

"Civilians have the right to flee combat zones, to go look for food and medical care. Both the Malian military and the rebels need to accept to open this corridor and not drag this otherwise peaceful population into the fighting. They did not ask for this. …If this corridor is not opened, we are going to see inestimable losses among civilians and their belongings," Mariko said.

Rebels have cut cell phone links to parts of the occupied territory, like the city of Gao.

Displaced northerners, like Faty Toure in Bamako, haven't been able to reach family there for more than a week.

"We are worried how they are getting clean drinking water. Before the phones were cut, they told us they didn't have petrol to pump water. How are they going to get food and water? They will get sick drinking from the river," Toure said.

In the central west part of the country, French and Malian forces are restricting access to the town of Diabaly, which Islamists seized and then appear to have abandoned. 

Malian army colonel Seibou Sokoba said it is hard to tell rebels and non-rebels apart.

"You know the war against Islamists is not easy. They have mixed in deep within the population and slowly, slowly certain elements of the population will adhere to their cause. That's what makes war difficult with these people," Sokoba said.

Human rights groups say that logic⁴ is leading to army abuses and revenge attacks against civilians, in particular against lighter-skinned Arab and Tuareg northerners, who are perceived to be rebel supporters. 

1 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。

2 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

3 infiltration   

n.渗透；下渗；渗滤；入渗

参考例句：

• The police tried to prevent infiltration by drug traffickers. 警方尽力阻止毒品走私分子的潜入。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A loss in volume will occur if infiltration takes place. 如果发生了渗润作用，水量就会减少。 来自辞典例句

4 logic   

n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性

参考例句：

• What sort of logic is that?这是什么逻辑？
• I don't follow the logic of your argument.我不明白你的论点逻辑性何在。