VOA常速英语2008年-Border Incident Highlights Challenges of Chad,

By Nico Colombant
Dakar
06 March 2008

A deadly incident in the border region between Chad and Sudan in which a French soldier was apparently¹ killed is highlighting the challenges of peacekeeping in the refugee-flooded, violence-wracked region. VOA's Nico Colombant reports from Dakar.

Experts from the European peacekeeping mission in Chad are trying to identify the body of a French soldier who was reported missing after an incident on the Sudanese side of the border. Sudan authorities say his remains² were discovered near the border and flown to the capital.

Sudan's government also says four nomads³ were killed when they tried to carry his body and one of his grenades detonated. Another civilian⁴ was reported killed during the border incident.

French Defense⁵ Minister Herve Morin said the clashes took place March 3 when a Jeep carrying French special forces troops on a surveillance mission inadvertently crossed into Sudan, where he says they were fired upon at close range. There were more firefights when the French troops crossed into Sudan a second time looking for the missing soldier.

Whatever the exact details, regional expert Richard Barltrop, of the research group Oxford⁶ Analytica, says it is a warning signal to the peacekeeping mission known as Eufor.

"This incident should serve as a strong reminder⁷ to Eufor that it has got to respect that border line," said Barltrop. "It is quite difficult actually to know where that border is. The border zone between Darfur and Chad has a bit of a feel of a no-man's land."

The peacekeeping force of nearly 4,000 European soldiers, more than half of them French, is mandated⁸ with ensuring security of people displaced by the conflicts involving rebel groups and militias⁹ in Chad, Central African Republic and Sudan's Darfur region.

More French troops are already in Chad as part of a cooperation agreement with the Chadian government, which is facing the region's most threatening insurgency¹⁰.

A U.S.-based German security analyst¹¹, who is studying the European deployment¹², Bjoern Seibert, says an advance team of Austrian peacekeepers who went to Chad's capital, during fighting last month, also encountered problems.

"During the assault of N'Djamena, there were some Austrian soldiers deployed¹³ in N'Djamena actually deployed in a hotel and they appeared not to have been informed by the French forces that the assaults were relatively¹⁴ close to the capital," said Seibert. "Actually, the rebels managed to enter the capital, and so the Austrian soldiers were caught in their hotel."

He says the Austrian soldiers were forced to hide in the hotel's basement before being able to reach the French-secured airport.

Barltrop says Eufor peacekeepers also face a security threat from Chadian rebels, but he thinks this will be less than the opposition¹⁵ they will face if they cross into Sudan again.

"There is obviously a risk that opportunistic attacks on Eufor will occur within Chad and will be carried out by Chadian rebels, because Chadian rebel groups did not welcome the prospect¹⁶ of the deployment of Eufor," he said. "However, I think the Chadian rebel groups will not or would not be as bold as Khartoum in provoking or sending out warning signals to Eufor."

Both analysts¹⁷ say the incident involving the French forces also shows how difficult deployment will be for the hybrid¹⁸ African Union, United Nations force in Darfur, and what is needed is a political solution with more talks, within and between governments.

1 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

2 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。

3 nomads   

n.游牧部落的一员( nomad的名词复数 )；流浪者；游牧生活；流浪生活

参考例句：

• For ten years she dwelled among the nomads of North America. 她在北美游牧民中生活了十年。
• Nomads have inhabited this region for thousands of years. 游牧民族在这地区居住已有数千年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

5 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。

6 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

7 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

8 mandated   

adj. 委托统治的

参考例句：

• Mandated desegregation of public schools. 命令解除公立学校中的种族隔离
• Britain was mandated to govern the former colony of German East Africa. 英国受权代管德国在东非的前殖民地。

9 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

10 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

11 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

12 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

13 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

14 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

15 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

16 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

17 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

18 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。