新奇事件簿 全世界面临1945年以来最严重人道主义危机

The United Nations (UN) has reported that the world is facing its biggest humanitarian¹ crisis since 1945. It has issued a plea to all nations to help avoid "a catastrophe²". UN Emergency Relief Coordinator³, Stephen O'Brien, warned that more than 20 million people face the threat of starvation and famine in Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen. He stressed there was an urgent need for, "accelerated global efforts to support UN humanitarian action on the ground". Mr O'Brien told the UN Security Council: "We stand at a critical point in history. Already at the beginning of the year we are facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the creation of the UN."

联合国报告称，全世界面临自1945年以来最严重的人道主义危机。联合国请求所有国家行动起来避免一场“灾难”。紧急救助协调员奥布莱恩(Stephen O’Brien)警告称，肯尼亚，尼日利亚，索马里，南苏丹和也门共有超过2000万人面临饿死或饥荒的威胁。他强调，目前迫切需要“全球加速支持联合国在当地的人道主义行动”。奥布莱恩告诉联合国安理会：“我们正处于历史上一个关键时刻。新年伊始，我们正面临自联合国成立以来最大的人道主义危机。”

The UN warned of a bleak⁴ future for millions in the affected⁵ African countries and Yemen. It said: "Without collective and coordinated⁶ global efforts…people risk starving to death and succumbing⁷ to disease … [with] stunted⁸ children, lost futures⁹, mass displacements¹⁰ and reversed development gains." While the natural El Nino weather phenomenon has brought little or no rain, a lot of the problems fuelling the crisis are man made. War and conflicts are displacing many in these countries and are hampering¹¹ efforts to distribute aid. There are reports of aid convoys¹² being attacked. Mr O'Brien said: "It is possible to avert¹³ this crisis, to avert these famines, to avert these looming¹⁴ human catastrophes¹⁵. It is all preventable."

联合国警告称，对于受影响的非洲国家和也门数百万人来说，未来的前景非常凄惨。“如果没有全球集中的，协调的努力，人们会面临饿死，或死于疾病，儿童发育迟缓，失去未来，大规模流离失所，发展成果倒退等风险。”厄尔尼诺这种自然天气现象造成降雨稀少或没有降雨，许多问题加剧了人为造成的危机。战争和冲突导致这些国家许多人背井离乡，阻碍了救援物资的分发。还有报道称救援车队遭遇袭击。奥布莱恩表示：“要避免这场危机，避免饥荒，避免这场惨绝人寰的人类悲剧是可能的。这是完全可以预防的。”

1 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

2 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

3 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

4 bleak   

adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的

参考例句：

• They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。
• The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

5 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。

6 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

7 succumbing   

不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的现在分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死

参考例句：

• Mrs. Smith washed and ironed clothes for him, succumbing to him. 史密斯太太被他迷住了，愿意为他洗衣烫衣。
• They would not in the end abandon their vital interests by succumbing to Soviet blandishment. 他们最终决不会受苏联人的甜言蜜语的诱惑，从而抛弃自己的切身利益。

8 stunted   

adj.矮小的；发育迟缓的

参考例句：

• the stunted lives of children deprived of education 未受教育的孩子所过的局限生活
• But the landed oligarchy had stunted the country's democratic development for generations. 但是好几代以来土地寡头的统治阻碍了这个国家民主的发展。

9 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

10 displacements   

n.取代( displacement的名词复数 )；替代；移位；免职

参考例句：

• The laws of physics are symmetrical for translational displacements. 物理定律对平移是对称的。 来自辞典例句
• We encounter only displacements of the first type. 我们只遇到第一类的驱替。 来自辞典例句

11 hampering   

妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• So fraud on cows and development aid is seriously hampering growth. 因此在牛问题上和发展补助上的诈骗严重阻碍了发展。
• Short-termism, carbon-trading, disputing the science-are hampering the implementation of direct economically-led objectives. 短效主义，出售二氧化碳，进行科学辩论，这些都不利于实现以经济为主导的直接目标。

12 convoys   

n.（有护航的）船队( convoy的名词复数 )；车队；护航（队）；护送队

参考例句：

• Truck convoys often stop over for lunch here. 车队经常在这里停下来吃午饭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A UN official said aid programs will be suspended until there's adequate protection for relief convoys. 一名联合国官员说将会暂停援助项目，直到援助车队能够得到充分的保护为止。 来自辞典例句

13 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。

14 looming   

n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• The foothills were looming ahead through the haze. 丘陵地带透过薄雾朦胧地出现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Then they looked up. Looming above them was Mount Proteome. 接着他们往上看，在其上隐约看到的是蛋白质组山。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望

15 catastrophes   

n.灾祸( catastrophe的名词复数 )；灾难；不幸事件；困难

参考例句：

• Two of history's worst natural catastrophes occurred in 1970. 1970年发生了历史上最严重两次自然灾害。 来自辞典例句
• The Swiss deposits contain evidence of such catastrophes. 瑞士的遗址里还有这种灾难的证据。 来自辞典例句