2006年VOA标准英语-Rebel Factions Battle in Sudan's Darfur Re

By Noel King
06 June 2006

A new front has emerged in the complex and bloody¹ war that has plagued Sudan's troubled Darfur region, where rebel factions³ are now fighting each other. The latest violence comes in the wake of the Darfur peace deal, which was not signed by all of the powerful rebel factions vying⁴ for control of the region.

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Fighting among factions within Darfur's rebel Sudan Liberation Army has brought a new round of violence to this already bloody region, following the refusal some rebels to sign a May 5 peace deal.

African Union peacekeepers say civilians⁵ are again being caught up in the violence.

Some of the latest fighting pits one faction² of the rebel Sudan Liberation Army, led by Minni Minnawi, who signed the peace deal, against another faction led by Abdel Wahid Mohamed Nur, who refused to sign.

African Union protection forces in Darfur say rebel infighting has taken a particularly nasty turn.

Colonel Richard Lourens is a Sector⁶ Commander with the A.U. in the volatile⁷ Kutum region in northern Darfur. "Within the villages the impact of the conflict between the rebels brings about a lot of suffering. Medical supplies are looted by those that are launching the attack. People are displaced, they leave their homes and they have to go to IDP camps and when they do return they are being harassed⁸ or they are being whipped. Some of them are being abducted⁹ and they are being ill-treated," he said.

Colonel Lourens led a recent investigation¹⁰ into a May 24th attack on Minni Minnawi's hometown of Birmaza, but the probe could not reach any firm conclusions because of differing accounts given by rebels.

According to members of the Nur faction, which refused to sign the peace deal but controls the town of Birmaza, Minni Minnawi's faction attacked the village, abducting¹¹ and torturing several civilians.

Those men were brought to Colonel Lourens, who told VOA their injuries indicate they were tortured. "The injuries incurred¹² was that upper arm, tight ropes being tied and then would make an incision¹³ on the upper arm. One would see it as burn marks but it is tight ropes tied around the arms. On the lower arm there would be marks with regard to whipping and on the back also whipping marks. When one goes to the mouth side, more whipping with pistols, swollen¹⁴ jaws," he said.

But supporters of Minnawi, who supported the Darfur peace deal, deny that they attacked the town. They say Chadian rebels control the town and they told the African Union that their own men had been abducted.

The A.U. has been unable come to a conclusion and it appears Minni Minnawi has lost popular support in Darfur.

Many people call him a traitor¹⁵ for signing the peace agreement.

Meanwhile, the faction led by Nur is demanding a greater share of the region's resources and has said that the 30-million dollars that the Sudan government has earmarked to compensate¹⁶ some 3-million victims of this brutal¹⁷ war, is not enough.

Nur has also asked for a Darfuri Vice¹⁸ President.

Minnawi recently returned from southern Sudan, where he was summoned along with Nur by Sudanese Vice President Salva Kiir.

But Nur, who is also under intense international pressure to sign the peace deal, did not attend the meeting.

Minnawi, upon his return from southern Sudan, told VOA he is frustrated¹⁹ by Nur's refusal. "Up to now [there is] not any progress to be mentioned. We waited there for three days. There is many efforts from the international partners, peace supporters from America, and this was the initiative of Salva Kiir himself. I think everybody is frustrated because up to now we cannot mention any progress on that effort. I don't know what Abdel Wahid is depending on up to now, because Abdel Wahid is supposed to be signed," he said.

The African Union Peace and Security Council have threatened to slap sanctions on Nur after giving him two additional weeks to sign the deal. But that deadline expired one week ago.

In the meantime, Darfuri civilians languish in devastated villages and squalid refugee camps and continue to bear the brunt of the bitter struggle

1 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

2 faction   

n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争

参考例句：

• Faction and self-interest appear to be the norm.派系之争和自私自利看来非常普遍。
• I now understood clearly that I was caught between the king and the Bunam's faction.我现在完全明白自己已陷入困境，在国王与布纳姆集团之间左右为难。

3 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

4 vying   

adj.竞争的；比赛的

参考例句：

• California is vying with other states to capture a piece of the growing communications market.为了在日渐扩大的通讯市场分得一杯羹，加利福尼亚正在和其他州展开竞争。
• Four rescue plans are vying to save the zoo.4个拯救动物园的方案正争得不可开交。

5 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。

6 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

7 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

8 harassed   

adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He has complained of being harassed by the police. 他投诉受到警方侵扰。
• harassed mothers with their children 带着孩子的疲惫不堪的母亲们

9 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

10 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

11 abducting   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的现在分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• She was charged with abducting a six-month-old child. 她被控诱拐一个6个月大的孩子。
• At the same time, the rate of abducting foreigners is going down. 同时，发生在外国人身上的绑架案正在下降。

12 incurred   

[医]招致的，遭受的； incur的过去式

参考例句：

• She had incurred the wrath of her father by marrying without his consent 她未经父亲同意就结婚，使父亲震怒。
• We will reimburse any expenses incurred. 我们将付还所有相关费用。

13 incision   

n．切口，切开

参考例句：

• The surgeon made a small incision in the patient's cornea.外科医生在病人的眼角膜上切开一个小口。
• The technique involves making a tiny incision in the skin.这项技术需要在皮肤上切一个小口。

14 swollen   

adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀

参考例句：

• Her legs had got swollen from standing up all day.因为整天站着，她的双腿已经肿了。
• A mosquito had bitten her and her arm had swollen up.蚊子叮了她，她的手臂肿起来了。

15 traitor   

n.叛徒，卖国贼

参考例句：

• The traitor was finally found out and put in prison.那个卖国贼终于被人发现并被监禁了起来。
• He was sold out by a traitor and arrested.他被叛徒出卖而被捕了。

16 compensate   

vt.补偿，赔偿；酬报 vi.弥补；补偿；抵消

参考例句：

• She used her good looks to compensate her lack of intelligence. 她利用她漂亮的外表来弥补智力的不足。
• Nothing can compensate for the loss of one's health. 一个人失去了键康是不可弥补的。

17 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

18 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

19 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》