2007年VOA标准英语-Ethiopian Police Say They Have Foiled Terrorist

By Alisha Ryu
Nairobi
15 August 2007

Police in Ethiopia say they have prevented a rebel group called the Oromo Liberation Front from carrying out a plan to bomb public buildings and assassinate¹ officials in the Ethiopian city of Nazareth. VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu in our East Africa Bureau in Nairobi reports Ethiopia's government in Addis Ababa also accuses neighboring Eritrea of sponsoring the alleged² plot.

The state-run Ethiopian News Agency reports that members of the national police anti-terrorism task force have detained a number of people they believe had responsibility for coordinating³ and carrying out the plot.

The news agency says police confiscated⁴ nine explosive devices, 12 fuses, and an AK-47 assault rifle during the arrests.

It is not clear how many people have been arrested or where they were caught. But the Ethiopian police say they are certain that members of the Oromo Liberation Front were planning to bomb infrastructure⁵ and public buildings in Nazareth, 76 kilometers southeast of the capital, Addis Ababa.

The rebels reportedly had a second plot to assassinate prominent officials, including the head of a local university.

Somali government troops detain an Oromo Ethiopian separatist fighter loyal to Somalia's Islamic Court Union, in Baidoa, Somalia (file photo)

Nazareth, called Adama by the ethnic⁶ Oromo people, sits in the middle of a 600,000-square-kilometer area the rebels call Oromia. Since 1973, rebels have fought the Ethiopian government for Oromia's autonomy. They accuse Addis Ababa of marginalizing and exploiting the Oromo people.

VOA was unable to reach the Oromo Liberation Front for comment on the terror allegations. But the rebels say the Ethiopian government has fabricated stories in the past about the rebel movement and its activities.

Earlier this month, the Oromo Liberation Front vehemently⁷ denied a report by Ethiopia's Defense⁸ Ministry⁹ its fighters were captured in the Ogaden region, where another Ethiopian rebel group, the Ogaden National Liberation Front, is fighting for autonomy. The Oromo Liberation Front also denied government accusations¹⁰ it has ties to al-Itihaad, a radical¹¹ Muslim group the United States considers a terrorist organization.

In a telephone interview with VOA, Eritrea's senior government spokesman, Yemane Gebremeskel, dismissed Addis Ababa's assertion that the Eritrean government in Asmara recruited rebels to carry out the attacks in Nazareth.

"That is absolute rubbish and they know it. We know it. Ethiopia does not want this border problem to be solved," said Gebremeskel. "So, it is trying to associate Eritrea with acts of terrorism or other violations¹² because they want to circumvent¹³ the critical issue of what is creating tension in this region. They want to deflect¹⁴ that tension."

From 1998 to 2000, Ethiopia and Eritrea fought an unresolved border war that killed more than 70,000 people and displaced more than 100,000 others. The United Nations has warned that the border stalemate threatens regional security.

1 assassinate   

vt.暗杀，行刺，中伤

参考例句：

• The police exposed a criminal plot to assassinate the president.警方侦破了一个行刺总统的阴谋。
• A plot to assassinate the banker has been uncovered by the police.暗杀银行家的密谋被警方侦破了。

2 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

3 coordinating   

v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的现在分词 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• He abolished the Operations Coordinating Board and the Planning Board. 他废除了行动协调委员会和计划委员会。 来自辞典例句
• He's coordinating the wedding, and then we're not going to invite him? 他是来协调婚礼的，难道我们不去请他？ 来自电影对白

4 confiscated   

没收，充公( confiscate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Their land was confiscated after the war. 他们的土地在战后被没收。
• The customs officer confiscated the smuggled goods. 海关官员没收了走私品。

5 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

6 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

7 vehemently   

adv. 热烈地

参考例句：

• He argued with his wife so vehemently that he talked himself hoarse. 他和妻子争论得很激烈，以致讲话的声音都嘶哑了。
• Both women vehemently deny the charges against them. 两名妇女都激烈地否认了对她们的指控。

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

9 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

10 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

11 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

12 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

13 circumvent   

vt.环绕，包围；对…用计取胜，智胜

参考例句：

• Military planners tried to circumvent the treaty.军事策略家们企图绕开这一条约。
• Any action I took to circumvent his scheme was justified.我为斗赢他的如意算盘而采取的任何行动都是正当的。

14 deflect   

v.(使)偏斜，(使)偏离，(使)转向

参考例句：

• Never let a little problem deflect you.决不要因一点小问题就半途而废。
• They decided to deflect from the original plan.他们决定改变原计划。