美国国家公共电台 NPR--What we know about the deadly church shooting in Nigeria

What we know about the deadly church shooting in Nigeria

Transcript¹

NPR's Steve Inkseep speaks with Associated Press Correspondent Chinedu Asadu about Sunday's deadly attack on a Catholic church in Nigeria.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

What do investigators² know about a mass shooting in Nigeria? It happened in Africa's most populous³ country, where people practice many faiths, including the Catholicism of the church that gunmen targeted on Sunday. There is no official death toll⁴, but local residents believe more than 50 people were killed. Chinedu Asadu is an Associated Press correspondent in Nigeria. He's on the line. Welcome.

CHINEDU ASADU: Thank you.

INSKEEP: How did this attack unfold?

ASADU: So the attack started on Sunday around 11:30, just as the worshippers at the church were rounding up service to leave for their various houses. They sneaked⁵ into the church, according to what the police commissioner⁶ told me, and they opened fire at everyone that's still standing⁷. So most of those killed were even those trying to escape. And that's - that lasted for about 30 minutes.

INSKEEP: Has anyone claimed responsibility?

ASADU: No group has claimed responsibility yet, and the police are yet to offer any leads as to who they are or any identity so far, from what they found out.

INSKEEP: Does this fit into any pattern in Nigeria of religious violence or other kinds of violence?

ASADU: So, so far, it's - from what we've heard from locals there, the community, it's relatively⁸ one of Nigeria's most peaceful areas because the country has been, you know, battling with lots of armed groups in parts of the country. But now this community is also one of those that has been caught up in Nigeria's pastoral conflict that has been plaguing the country for many years.

INSKEEP: You said Nigeria's pastoral conflict. What is that?

ASADU: So the country has had yearslong conflict between farmers and herders because of limited resources, you know, of water and land.

INSKEEP: So the pastoral conflict is a conflict between farmers who want to till the land and herders who want to grow livestock⁹ on the land. That's the dispute.

ASADU: Exactly. Exactly, yeah.

INSKEEP: How has this affected¹⁰ the community?

ASADU: So the community is still in shock two days after the attack because, like I said, Ondo state is relatively one of the most peaceful states in Nigeria. Nigeria has had its, you know, security crises in virtually all parts of the country. You have separatists in the southeast. You have militants¹¹. But Ondo is relatively peaceful. So it was also the element of surprise that these attackers took advantage of, knowing that the community is relaxed. When you speak to local authorities there, they say that they are still in shock, that they never expected this could happen, and also because you've not seen this kind of attack on a church for many years in Nigeria. The last time you had attacks like this was years ago when we had, you know, the Boko Haram insurgency¹² operating in the northeast...

INSKEEP: Right.

ASADU: ...You know, targeting churches. That was, like, about 10 years ago. So because this is also not a very common incident and because the targeted area is known to be one of the most peaceful parts of the country, so they are shocked. People are still mourning, and the sadness is really deep.

INSKEEP: Chinedu Asadu of the Associated Press. Thank you so much.

ASADU: Thanks for having me.

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 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

4 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

5 sneaked   

v.潜行( sneak的过去式和过去分词 )；偷偷溜走；（儿童向成人）打小报告；告状

参考例句：

• I sneaked up the stairs. 我蹑手蹑脚地上了楼。
• She sneaked a surreptitious glance at her watch. 她偷偷看了一眼手表。

6 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

7 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

8 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

9 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。

10 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

11 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。

12 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