VOA慢速英语2014 尼日利亚被绑架妇女逃脱

 

AS IT IS 2014-07-09 Kidnapped Women Escape in Nigeria 尼日利亚被绑架妇女逃脱

Officials in Nigeria say more than 60 women escaped from their kidnappers¹ last weekend.  They reportedly were captured last month by the militant² group Boko Haram. 

The escape of the kidnapped women is good news for Nigerians.  But hundreds of other girls who were captured earlier have yet to be recovered.  Boko Haram launched its campaign against the government five years ago.  It now appears the group’s operations are growing deadlier and more far-reaching.

Nigerian security forces say they are following what they call a “female wing” of Boko Haram.  The announcement came after the arrest of three women last week.

Tony Mezeh is a lawyer.

“Right now in Nigeria, the security situation is worsening and we are beginning to see both the militants³ are women…they co-opt women in.  They employ children, youths.  So we do not know who is who so...”

Boko Haram supporters are thought to live mostly in northeastern Nigeria.  But Mr. Mezeh says the group’s influence is spreading to other areas.

Since April, three bombings have killed more than 100 people in Abuja.  Two of the bombs exploded at a bus station.  The third exploded at a shopping mall in a wealthy central neighborhood.

Boko Haram militants claimed responsibility for the first bus station attack, which happened in late April.  They also claimed responsibility for capturing more than 200 schoolgirls, who remain missing.

Dandison Nwankwa works in the Niger Delta⁴, the home of Nigeria’s oil industry.  He says if militants can attack Abuja, they may seek to attack the Niger Delta.

“We have always put in place measures in our own internal security system to avert⁵ all these incidents happening in other places.”

Mr. Nwankwa is the general supervisor⁶ of the Izu Chukwu bus company.  He says his company requires every passenger to be searched before going on bus trips.  And homeless people are no longer permitted to sleep at bus stations.

“And without searching, all the passengers will not be allowed to enter the vehicle until the vehicle decides to move, so that somebody will not infiltrate⁷ something inside the bus.”

Boko Haram has killed thousands of people in five years of attacks.  The group says it wants to establish its own version of Islamic law.  But most of the victims have been Muslims.

Lawyer Tony Mezeh says Christian⁸ religious centers have also been common targets.  He says many churches recently banned handbags as part of non-government efforts to fight the rebellion.

“These measures that women should not carry bags to churches, people should not be allowed to sleep in motor-parks, people should not be allowed to sleep in uncompleted buildings.  They are all pro-active measures to ensure that we do not allow these hoodlums to mill around us.”

Nigeria is Africa’s largest exporter of oil, and oil produces the majority of the government’s income.  Boko Haram has never attacked oil-producing areas in the south, but it has threatened to do so.

The group often carries out the terror attacks it promises.  But it has also made unrealistic threats, including ones against foreign heads of state -- both living and dead. 

1 kidnappers   

n.拐子，绑匪( kidnapper的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They were freed yesterday by their kidnappers unharmed. 他们昨天被绑架者释放了，没有受到伤害。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The kidnappers had threatened to behead all four unless their jailed comrades were released. 帮匪们曾经威胁说如果印度方面不释放他们的同伙，他们就要将这四名人质全部斩首。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

3 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。

4 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

5 avert   

v.防止，避免；转移(目光、注意力等)

参考例句：

• He managed to avert suspicion.他设法避嫌。
• I would do what I could to avert it.我会尽力去避免发生这种情况。

6 supervisor   

n.监督人，管理人，检查员，督学，主管，导师

参考例句：

• Between you and me I think that new supervisor is a twit.我们私下说，我认为新来的主管人是一个傻瓜。
• He said I was too flighty to be a good supervisor.他说我太轻浮不能成为一名好的管理员。

7 infiltrate   

vt./vi.渗入，透过；浸润

参考例句：

• The teacher tried to infiltrate her ideas into the children's minds.老师设法把她的思想渗透到孩子们的心中。
• It can infiltrate as much as 100 kilometers into enemy territory at night.可以在夜间深入敌领土100千米。

8 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。