2006年VOA标准英语-Witnesses Say Ethiopian Troops Enter Somali Gov

By Pearse Lynch
Nairobi
20 July 2006

Islamists in Somalia have threatened to wage a holy war against Ethiopian troops, who are believed to have crossed the border into Somalia.  Media reports say a large number of Ethiopian troops are in the provincial¹ town of Baidoa, where Somalia's Ethiopian-backed Transitional Federal Government is based.

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Islamic Court Militias² on their trucks with anti aircraft guns in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, July 20, 2006 
  
The crisis began late Wednesday when Islamic militias advanced within 60 kilometers of Baidoa from their base in Mogadishu.  The advance, to the town of Buurhakana, prompted Somali interim³ government leaders to issue warnings that the militias were preparing to attack Baidoa.

Islamic officials in Mogadishu say they had no intention of attacking the interim government.  The Islamists say they merely wanted to extend religious law in the area and wanted to escort more than 100 government defectors back to Mogadishu. 

The Islamists accuse government officials of exaggerating the truth of the advance as an excuse to invite Ethiopian troops into the country.

Ethiopia's Minister of Information Berhan Hailu has neither confirmed nor denied that troops from his country are in Somalia.  But he told reporters in Addis Ababa that Ethiopia is prepared to defend the interim government from any attack.

Largely Christian⁴ Ethiopia is the main power in the Horn of Africa region.  Its leaders have repeatedly said that they would not tolerate the establishment of an Islamic state on its doorstep.

Somalia's interim Deputy Prime Minister Ismel Hurreh tells VOA that Ethiopia's long-time rival Eritrea is partly to blame for the escalating⁵ crisis in the Horn.  He says Eritrea is funding the Islamic militias, encouraging them to seize Somalia and draw Ethiopia into a potentially ruinous conflict.

"Eritrea is very well involved in this," he said.  "Eritrea wants to have a proxy⁶ war.  They want to use these Islamist people as a pressure point against Ethiopia and what they consider to be a more conservative middle of the ground government like the TFG."

Hurreh says his government has no plans to attend the second round of peace talks with Islamic leaders, which had been scheduled to resume Saturday in the Sudanese capital Khartoum. 

"As far as we are concerned, they [must] renounce⁷ force as a tool for gaining ground," he said.  "We are all Muslims.  They do not have to teach us what Islam is.  And if they believe in a very fundamentalist version of Islam, that is not what most Somalis believe in."

There are widespread fears that Ethiopian troop deployments in Somalia will lead to a wave of violence across the region. 

The leader of the Islamic group, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, says foreign troops, no matter who they are, will be fiercely opposed.  Earlier this month, al-Qaida leader Osama bin⁸ Laden⁹ vowed¹⁰ to send holy warriors¹¹ to help Somalis fight against foreigners. 

Washington has expressed concern over the latest developments and has again urged both sides to seek dialogue.

Somalia has been without a central government since dictator Mohamed Siad Barre, was overthrown¹² in 1991.  The country's Transitional Federal Government was cobbled together 19 months ago in neighboring Kenya, the 14th attempt to form a government. 

While the interim government is recognized by the United Nations, it has little power and has been unable to base itself in the capital because of security fears.  

The Islamists, who seized control of the capital, Mogadishu, from factional leaders in early June, have threatened the government's authority by extending its rule to much of the south of the country.

1 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

2 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

3 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

4 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。

5 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

6 proxy   

n.代理权，代表权；（对代理人的）委托书；代理人

参考例句：

• You may appoint a proxy to vote for you.你可以委托他人代你投票。
• We enclose a form of proxy for use at the Annual General Meeting.我们附上委任年度大会代表的表格。

7 renounce   

v.放弃；拒绝承认，宣布与…断绝关系

参考例句：

• She decided to renounce the world and enter a convent.她决定弃绝尘世去当修女。
• It was painful for him to renounce his son.宣布与儿子脱离关系对他来说是很痛苦的。

8 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

9 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

10 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

11 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

12 overthrown   

adj. 打翻的，推倒的，倾覆的 动词overthrow的过去分词

参考例句：

• The president was overthrown in a military coup. 总统在军事政变中被赶下台。
• He has overthrown the basic standards of morality. 他已摒弃了基本的道德标准。