[ti:Leaders Call for Ceasefire as Conflict Spreads in Ethiopia] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:01.92]African and Western nations on Thursday [00:05.64]called for an immediate ceasefire in Ethiopia. [00:10.32]Tigrayan forces from the country's north [00:13.24]have been nearing the capital this week. [00:16.92]The U.S. special envoy for the Horn of Africa, Jeffrey Feltman, [00:22.44]arrived in the capital, Addis Ababa. [00:26.44]He asked for a halt to military operations [00:30.04]and a start to ceasefire talks. [00:33.68]African Union Commission Chair Moussa Faki Mahamat [00:37.88]said he met Feltman to discuss efforts [00:41.44]toward talks and political solutions. [00:46.04]The U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa approved requests [00:50.08]by some employees and family members to leave the country [00:54.00]because of the worsening hostilities. [00:58.12]The European Union and the East African partnership [01:02.36]of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) [01:07.64]joined those calling for a ceasefire. [01:11.36]IGAD urged both sides to show restraint, [01:15.32]cool tensions and work out their differences through discussion. [01:20.24]The two sides are the central government [01:22.72]and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and its allies. [01:29.52]Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni called [01:33.76]for an IGAD meeting on November 16 to discuss the conflict. [01:40.72]Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta issued a statement [01:45.24]on Wednesday saying, "The fighting must stop!" [01:50.56]He called on the two sides "to put down their arms [01:54.08]and to cease the fighting, to talk, [01:56.96]and to find a path to sustainable peace." [02:01.64]U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres [02:05.36]said he spoke to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed [02:09.72]on Wednesday "to offer my good offices to create [02:14.24]the conditions for a dialogue so the fighting stops". [02:19.04]Addis Ababa police spokesperson Fasika Fanta [02:22.96]said on Thursday that police had arrested "many people" [02:27.40]since the government declared a state of emergency on Tuesday. [02:32.68]Locals told Reuters on Wednesday [02:35.24]that many Tigrayans had been arrested. [02:38.92]But Fasika said arrests were not based on ethnicity. [02:43.68]"We are only arresting those who are directly or indirectly [02:48.44]supporting the illegal terrorist group," he said. [02:53.72]"This includes moral, financial and propaganda support." [02:59.00]Fasika also said many people were registering weapons [03:03.44]at police stations around the city. [03:07.80]The government asked people on Tuesday [03:10.96]to prepare to defend their areas. [03:15.48]"Some are even coming with bombs and heavy weapons. [03:19.48]We are registering those too," he said. [03:24.12]Streets and stores in Addis Ababa [03:26.76]were busy as usual on Thursday morning, [03:29.48]though some locals said there was a feeling of uneasy calm. [03:35.12]"There are rumors about the approach of the rebels. [03:38.84]People debate about the conflict, [03:41.64]most of the people accuse the government [03:44.16]for what happened," one man in the capital said. [03:48.84]Abiy's government declared the state of emergency on Tuesday [03:53.08]as the Tigrayan forces threatened to push forward to Addis Ababa. [03:58.92]TPLF spokesman Getachew Reda said on Wednesday [04:03.56]that the Tigrayan troops were in the town of Kemise [04:07.24]in Amhara state, 325 kilometers from the capital. [04:13.24]I'm Jill Robbins. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM