VOA慢速英语2015 肯尼亚旅游遭受恐怖主义威胁

 

AS IT IS 2014-12-30 Kenyan Tourism Suffers from Terrorism Threat 肯尼亚旅游遭受恐怖主义威胁

The Kenyan coastal¹ city of Mombasa, and its beautiful beaches, are usually full of thousands of people from Kenya and Europe during the Christmas holiday. But this year, there are few people on the beaches or in the city’s many hotels. That is because of a recent series of terror attacks linked to Somali militants².

Abdallah Omar sells bathing suits. He says he does not have many customers this year.

"For all the years I have been here, this year business has been bad. If I compare it with the last six years, business was fairly good. This year, I don’t think kids will go to school."

Terrorists have attacked places in Mombasa, and there have been killings³ of people suspected of terrorism and also religious workers. In the past year, police have temporarily closed some Muslim religious centers. Many people who live in Mombasa are Muslim and the city has many mosques⁵. Officials have accused the leaders of some of the mosques of trying to convince young Muslim men to become militants. The officials also say some mosque⁴ leaders have been telling some of their followers⁶ to join the Somali terrorist group al-Shabab. Members of the group have carried out many attacks in Kenya in the last few years.

Police in Mombasa say there has been an increase in attacks on civilians⁷, government workers and religious workers by young Muslim men.

In answer to the attacks, some Western countries have warned their citizens not to travel to Mombasa.  

City officials estimate businesses that depend on travelers have received $4 million less so far because of the attacks.

VOA spoke⁸ with a German traveler named Brian who says he feels safe in Mombasa.

“And I heard the travel warning, and then I called the embassy. They were saying ‘You gonna be safe -- we raised the security,’ and I, I, I try not to follow fears in general.”

Alfred Mwenda sells sunglasses. He says people do not understand that many of the attacks have happened not in Mombasa but in Lamu, a town nearby.

"Those visitors who come from Nairobi, if they hear Mombasa or Lamu there is death, and a terror attack. They see Mombasa like Lamu. Most don’t know that Lamu is different from Mombasa."

Business and hotel owners hope the New Year brings calm and the return of travelers.

Words from This Story

bathing suits – n. clothing worn by people when they enter a lake, ocean or swimming pool

mosque – n. a religious center for people of the Muslim faith; a building used for public worship my Muslims

1 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

2 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。

3 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

4 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

5 mosques   

清真寺； 伊斯兰教寺院，清真寺； 清真寺，伊斯兰教寺院( mosque的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Why make us believe that this tunnel runs underneath the mosques? 为什么要让我们相信这条隧洞是在清真寺下？
• The city's three biggest mosques, long fallen into disrepair, have been renovated. 城里最大的三座清真寺，过去年久失修，现在已经修复。

6 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

7 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。

8 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。