Attacks persist on Ukrainian steel plant, where some people managed to flee

Attacks persist on Ukrainian steel plant, where some people managed to flee

Transcript¹

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Chris Hanger² of the International Committee of the Red Cross about efforts to escort civilians³ out of the besieged⁴ Ukrainian city of Mariupol.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Ukrainian officials say Russian forces are still trying to take control of Mariupol's Azovstal steelworks. The plant is where Ukrainian fighters and civilians have been holding out for weeks. The reports of fierce fighting come as Russia says it will hold to a three-day ceasefire of its assault to allow civilians to evacuate⁵. Earlier this week, some were able to escape. The International Committee of the Red Cross is helping⁶ organize those evacuations, and Chris Hanger, with the ICRC, is on the line from Zaporizhzhia.

CHRIS HANGER: Good morning.

FADEL: If you could just start by describing the role of the ICRC in arranging these evacuations.

HANGER: So we had a safe passage operation that lasted five days that brought people from the Azovstal plant - civilians, elderly, women and children - to Zaporizhzhia. It was a five-day operation, very complicated. But in the end, these people are now in a safer place. At the same time, just yesterday night, we managed to do another safe passage operation to get over 300 civilians out of the area in Mariupol. So this is another success and another safe passage operation, and our role as a neutral intermediary in this type of conflict is to really try to facilitate the dialogue with the parties through the conflict to make sure that really practical agreements are found so that civilians can get to safety.

FADEL: How many people have you been able to get out?

HANGER: So out of the Azovstal plant, it was several dozens - mainly children, mainly women, mainly elderly. We've - at the same time, in the surrounding areas around Mariupol, we've managed to get more than 100 people out. And yesterday, more than 300 civilians came to Zaporizhzhia in another safe passage operation, which - these civilians came from Mariupol, but also surrounding villages like Manhush, Berdyansk and Tokmak.

FADEL: What are people saying who have gotten safe passage - who've been able to get out of Mariupol and the surrounding areas on these buses? What are they saying about what they've been through?

HANGER: When our teams spoke⁷ to them - I mean, one thing that struck them is, really, it's the first time - the people that we got out of the Azovstal plant - that it's been over two months they've not seen the sky...

FADEL: Oh.

HANGER: ...So they had no idea what was going on around them. They only heard fighting - intense fighting around them. But obviously, they were relieved when they were able to see the sun again, but they saw destruction. So they saw their home, their city, completely destroyed. And, of course, they were in a deep state of shock. Women were crying. Men were staying silent. There was actually a priest, and a lot of people were asking for a priest, so this shows you a little bit the level of trauma⁸ and devastation⁹ these people have seen and been through. And they kept asking us - are we safe? Are we going to be OK? Where are we going? And that shows you, really, how deeply traumatized these people have been after two months in such a horrible, dire¹⁰ situation.

FADEL: And now that they're in Zaporizhzhia, what happens to them next?

HANGER: So, of course, there are these immediate¹¹ needs that people think of - that we see from images, that we hear from people. There were people, for example, that had broken - they had fractures, so they needed to have direct medical care. There was a pregnant woman. There were people, of course, that didn't have access to medication - so people with diabetes¹², they needed to be cared for. At the same time, now, people, of course, need a place to stay, so there are different organizations working on this on the ground in Zaporizhzhia, helping these people to find shelter. At the same time, I think I want to stress that it's - I think we can't really imagine what these people have been through, and there's obviously a huge need for psychological support. And that's something - our teams also work across Ukraine on this because the mental scars of these type of situations will take years to process.

FADEL: Hmm. How many civilians are now left behind in Mariupol, and what are their prospects¹³ of getting out?

HANGER: So it's obviously a very difficult situation. There are reports that there is renewed fighting, and this is an active conflict, so we don't have specific numbers on the people that are still trapped, but not only in Mariupol and not only in the Azovstal plant, but across Ukraine. And we are in constant dialogue to get these people to safety if they wish to leave, and we hope that those who are still trapped can find a safe way out with the support of the ICRC or other organizations.

FADEL: Chris Hanger with the International Committee of the Red Cross. He joined us from Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine. Thank you so much for your time.

HANGER: Thank you.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 hanger   

n.吊架，吊轴承；挂钩

参考例句：

• I hung my coat up on a hanger.我把外衣挂在挂钩上。
• The ship is fitted with a large helicopter hanger and flight deck.这艘船配备有一个较大的直升飞机悬挂装置和飞行甲板。

3 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。

4 besieged   

包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Paris was besieged for four months and forced to surrender. 巴黎被围困了四个月后被迫投降。
• The community besieged the newspaper with letters about its recent editorial. 公众纷纷来信对报社新近发表的社论提出诘问，弄得报社应接不暇。

5 evacuate   

v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便

参考例句：

• We must evacuate those soldiers at once!我们必须立即撤出这些士兵！
• They were planning to evacuate the seventy American officials still in the country.他们正计划转移仍滞留在该国的70名美国官员。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

8 trauma   

n.外伤，精神创伤

参考例句：

• Counselling is helping him work through this trauma.心理辅导正帮助他面对痛苦。
• The phobia may have its root in a childhood trauma.恐惧症可能源于童年时期的创伤。

9 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

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 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

13 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。