VOA标准英语2009年-Eyewitness: Somali Pirates Tried to Seize

By Alisha Ryu
Nairobi
10 November 2009

An eyewitness¹ account of an attempted plane hijacking² last week in Somalia's northern semi-autonomous Puntland region suggests would-be hijackers were members of a pirate gang, whose operations have been affected⁴ by the increased international naval⁵ patrols in the Gulf⁶ of Aden.

Last Tuesday, about 30 passengers boarded a commercial plane in the northeastern town of Bosasso for a short flight to neighboring Djibouti.

Among the passengers was Yusuf M. Hassan, a Somali-American journalist and the former managing editor of Garowe Online Web site. Hassan tells VOA he noticed two German journalists on board, but he says no one noticed two young Somali men, sitting quietly in the first row.

"The plane was not in the air for more the three minutes when some guy in the very front jumped up and, in the Somali language, said, 'This plane has been hijacked⁷.' When the pilot heard his very loud voice and a woman in the front scream, the pilot closed and locked his door," he said.

The move angered the would-be hijacker³, who waved a handgun and fired at the cockpit door several times. Hassan says the bullets glanced off the door and ricocheted above the heads of screaming passengers.   

"His demands were - one, he wants the plane landed in Las Qorey, and two, he wants to keep the plane and the two German journalists," he added. "I guess the rest of us were supposed to walk from Las Qorey to wherever we had to walk to."

Las Qorey is a coastal⁸ town in the disputed Sanaag region, which straddles Puntland and the breakaway republic of Somaliland, and is home to a gang of pirates.

The gang made international headlines last June by capturing two German tourists sailing off the coast of Yemen. The tourists were freed two months later in exchange for a $1 million ransom⁹.

Hassan says the Russian captain of the Daallo flight turned the plane, making it appear it was flying toward Las Qorey. But the pilot was taking the plane back to Bosasso. Hassan says the lead gunmen, unaware¹⁰ his demand was being ignored, made a call on his cell phone as the plane descended¹¹ toward Bosasso airport.

"I remember him saying to whomever he was talking to, he said, 'Guys, do you see us? The plane is landing.' I am thinking he is speaking to his gang in Las Qorey, who are waiting," he said.

The plane landed safely in Bosasso. Surrounded by security forces, the gunmen tried to escape from the plane hiding behind passengers, but they were caught. 

Hassan says through various contacts, he subsequently learned that at least one of the gunmen was a member of the pirate group in Las Qorey, which has had trouble seizing vessels¹² for ransom in the well-patrolled waters off Somalia's northern coast. 

"My understanding is that because of NATO operations, the pirate gangs have lost a lot of money. And any time the pirates do not seize enough boats, they begin kidnapping western people," he explained.

More than 30 warships¹³ from 16 nations are patrolling the Gulf of Aden and the surrounding area and their presence has had an effect on the number of ships pirates have been able to seize. According to the International Maritime¹⁴ Bureau, the number of successful hijacks¹⁵ has dropped from an average of one in 6.4 vessels in 2008 to one in nine vessels this year. 

But the International Maritime Bureau reports the number of attempted hijackings surged dramatically in 2009. Somali pirates are also shifting their operations farther out to sea. On Monday, a Hong Kong-registered oil tanker¹⁶ was attacked by pirates in the Indian Ocean, more than 1,800 kilometers off the Somali coast.

1 eyewitness   

n.目击者，见证人

参考例句：

• The police questioned several eyewitness to the murder.警察询问了谋杀案的几位目击者。
• He was the only eyewitness of the robbery.他是那起抢劫案的唯一目击者。

2 hijacking   

n. 劫持, 抢劫 动词hijack的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• I have been told about the hijacking . 我已听说了那次劫机事件。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 口语
• They are taking measures to guarantee against the occurrence of hijacking. 他们正采取措施防止劫机事件的发生。

3 hijacker   

n.拦路抢劫者

参考例句：

• We needed a credibIe hijacker who knew the pIane. 也需要一个懂飞机的让人相信的劫机犯。
• I've never heard of a hijacker Ietting passengers deboard before. 以前也从没听说过有劫机犯让乘客离开。

4 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。

5 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

6 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

7 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

8 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

9 ransom   

n.赎金，赎身；v.赎回，解救

参考例句：

• We'd better arrange the ransom right away.我们最好马上把索取赎金的事安排好。
• The kidnappers exacted a ransom of 10000 from the family.绑架者向这家人家勒索10000英镑的赎金。

10 unaware   

a.不知道的，未意识到的

参考例句：

• They were unaware that war was near. 他们不知道战争即将爆发。
• I was unaware of the man's presence. 我没有察觉到那人在场。

11 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

12 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 warships   

军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只

参考例句：

• The enemy warships were disengaged from the battle after suffering heavy casualties. 在遭受惨重伤亡后，敌舰退出了海战。
• The government fitted out warships and sailors for them. 政府给他们配备了战舰和水手。

14 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

15 hijacks   

劫持( hijack的名词复数 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• Just as life infiltrates matter mercilessly and then hijacks it forever, cultural life hijacks biology. 正如生命无情地浸入物质并永远地将其劫持，文化生命也劫持了生物界。

16 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。