加沙地带局势恶化，以色列求助于世界

 As Conditions in Gaza Worsen, Israel Turns to World for Help

Four years ago, Israeli forces and Hamas militants² fought a 50-day war. The fighting caused heavy damage to many buildings, roads and other infrastructure³ in the Gaza Strip.

Now, Israel fears a humanitarian⁴ disaster along its border. The country is appealing to the world to provide support for a series of development projects in Gaza.

Qatar has become an unlikely partner in the Israeli effort. The wealthy Gulf⁵ state has offered to donate money and is urging other nations to do so.

But, it remains⁶ unclear whether the rest of the international community is ready to help.

Donors⁸ have noted⁹ some successes in rebuilding Gaza since the 2014 war. But they say Israeli government officials are still too slow in approving projects. And they say Israel’s blockade of Hamas-ruled Gaza is working against the goal of developing the territory’s economy.

The World Bank has helped direct the rebuilding effort. The aid organization said, “Israel now realizes the growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza and its impact on the population.”

Gaza’s recent history

Gaza is a small piece of land between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean¹⁰ Sea. Conditions there have worsened since Hamas militants seized the area in 2007. The militants took away control from the Palestinian Authority.

Israel and Egypt set up a blockade in an attempt to weaken Hamas. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has increased pressure on Hamas by cutting wages of public servants and limiting electricity. He hopes his administration can regain¹¹ control of the territory.

Israel and Hamas have fought three conflicts since the group took control of Gaza. The most recent one, in 2014, was especially damaging. The United Nations says nearly 20,000 homes were destroyed, and over 150,000 others were damaged. Hospitals, schools and infrastructure were also damaged.

After the fighting ended, international donors gathered in Cairo and came up with a $3.5 billion reconstruction¹² plan. But only 53 percent of the promised money has been donated, according to the World Bank.

Gaza’s economy is in trouble. Unemployment is over 40 percent. Public water supplies are undrinkable. And Gazans receive only a few hours of electricity a day.

The Associated Press says evidence of problems are clearly noticeable on the streets of Gaza. Many of the roads are in bad condition. Drivers often see young men sitting idly in groups on sidewalks.

Many storekeepers spend their time on smartphones since few people are buying their products. And the air is often filled with the smell of waste from the Mediterranean.

Israel and Hamas blaming each other

Israeli officials blame Hamas for the conditions. They say Israel has no choice but to continue the blockade, which restricts imports and exports, because the group is plotting ways to attack Israel.

The militant¹ group has said it wants to destroy the Jewish state.

But fearing a humanitarian disaster that could lead to violence, Israel has begun to soften¹³ its position.

Israel and the international community, however, have different ideas for how to fix the situation.

On January 31, Israeli officials appealed to an emergency gathering¹⁴ of donor⁷ nations to support delayed projects sought by the international community. The officials said the projects are expected to cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

The Israeli list is reported to include a power line, natural gas line, industrial area and waste treatment center.

Mohammed Al-Emadi, the head of Qatar’s Gaza reconstruction committee, urged other nations to support the effort.

“We have to fund as soon as possible,” he told the AP. “When you want to do work in Gaza, you have to go through the Israelis.”

Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism¹⁵

Qatar, the United States and the European Union have been leading donors to what is called the “Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism.” The program was set up after the 2014 war to rebuild the territory while avoiding contact with Hamas.

Under the effort, the Palestinian Authority leads the projects, while Israeli security officials consider and approve them. The United Nations studies the movement of supplies to make sure that things like cement and metal pipes do not reach Hamas.

Israel considers the system to be a success. Israeli reports say nearly 90,000 homes have been rebuilt, while 380 large projects, such as hospitals, housing and water treatment centers, have been completed.

Qatar has provided money for some of the biggest projects. These include an $84 million road across Gaza and a $114 million group of buildings in southern Gaza and a modern hospital.

U.N. and World Bank officials say the reconstruction mechanism has worked well on normal projects. But they say actions by Israeli officials and security inspections¹⁶ of complex equipment have resulted in delays of up to six months.

At the donors’ conference last month, the Israelis promised to ease some restrictions¹⁷ and to speed up work. The World Bank welcomed the steps.

UN diplomat¹⁸ Nickolay Mladenov said that for Gaza’s economy to truly recover, the world must direct its attention to bigger goals. These include halting the militant activities of Hamas, permitting the Abbas government to retake control of Gaza and ending the Israeli blockade.

“This will fully¹⁹ enable the international community to support the economic and social revival²⁰ of Gaza,” he said.

I’m Alice Bryant.

And I'm Phil Dierking.

Words in This Story

infrastructure – n. the system of public works in an area

impact – n. a major effect; the force of one thing on another

reconstruction – n. the act of rebuilding

according – adv. as stated by or in

idly – adv. without much thought or effort

fund – v. to pay for

cement – n. a hard substance made from a mixture of soft powder, water and other substances

revival – n. a return of importance, strength or interest

1 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

2 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

3 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。

4 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

5 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。

6 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。

7 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

8 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

11 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

12 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

13 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

14 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

15 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

16 inspections   

n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅

参考例句：

• Regular inspections are carried out at the prison. 经常有人来视察这座监狱。
• Government inspections ensure a high degree of uniformity in the standard of service. 政府检查确保了在服务标准方面的高度一致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

18 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

19 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

20 revival   

n.复兴，复苏，（精力、活力等的）重振

参考例句：

• The period saw a great revival in the wine trade.这一时期葡萄酒业出现了很大的复苏。
• He claimed the housing market was showing signs of a revival.他指出房地产市场正出现复苏的迹象。