VOA常速英语2007年-UNHCR Says 90,000 Fled Recent Fighting In Somal

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
02 November 2007

U.N. refugee agency says the situation in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, has calmed down, but remains¹ volatile². It says 90,000 people fled the recent fighting between Ethiopian troops, backing the transitional government, and insurgents³. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva that the UNHCR says it fears more people are likely to flee the city.

The U.N. refugee agency reports the fighting on Saturday, Sunday and Monday was the worst in months. The fighting is over for now, but the UNHCR says the situation in Mogadishu remains volatile and tense. It says people are living in fear.

UNHCR Spokeswoman Jennifer Pagonis says more than half of the 90,000 people who fled the capital over the past week have settled along the road linking Mogadishu to Afgooye, some 30 kilometers to the west. She says there are already about 100,000 displaced people in Afgooye who fled the capital earlier in the year.

"So, the latest number of people who fled to that area, about 47,000, have joined those 100,000 displaced already," said Pagonis. "So, they are now crammed⁴ into the little huts and things, which have sprung up all around the road linking the capital with Afgooye. So, they are now squeezed into these tiny little huts. There is a lack of food, sanitation⁵, water, all of the basic necessities of life."

The World Food Program says it has been distributing more than 2,500 tons of food to the newly displaced living in 27 different spots along the road to Afgooye.

WFP Spokeswoman Christiane Berthiaume says people are receiving the equivalent of one month's supply of food. She says most of the displaced are women and children, many of whom are now living with relatives who fled Mogadishu earlier in the year.

She says WFP has not yet resumed the distribution of food in Mogadishu. That was suspended after the head of WFP in the city was detained by the transitional government last month.

"But, we are going to start, what we call, a wet food program for 50,000 people suffering from malnutrition⁶, following an agreement that we have signed with a Somali NGO [non-governmental organization]," said Berthiaume.

The UNHCR reports 450,000 people fled Mogadishu this year. This brings the total number of internally displaced people in Somalia to an estimated 850,000.

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 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。

3 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

4 crammed   

adj.塞满的，挤满的；大口地吃；快速贪婪地吃v.把…塞满；填入；临时抱佛脚( cram的过去式)

参考例句：

• He crammed eight people into his car. 他往他的车里硬塞进八个人。
• All the shelves were crammed with books. 所有的架子上都堆满了书。

5 sanitation   

n.公共卫生，环境卫生，卫生设备

参考例句：

• The location is exceptionally poor,viewed from the sanitation point.从卫生角度来看，这个地段非常糟糕。
• Many illnesses are the result,f inadequate sanitation.许多疾病都来源于不健全的卫生设施。

6 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。