VOA标准英语2011--Israelis, Palestinians Brace for UN Stat

Israelis, Palestinians Brace¹ for UN Statehood Debate

It is market day in Ramallah, the West Bank. Shoppers are making their daily purchases. And as they shop, the Palestinian proposal to seek recognition at the United Nations is a major topic of discussion.
Sabah Rajah, shopping for her family, says recognition is her wish in life.
She says recognition will change everything, the behavior of the people, the crossing points, the siege of Palestinian territories, and they will have a good life.
Shop owner Fareed Zaban says the Palestinians and Israelis have been negotiating for a long time but have little to show for it.
He says we want them to recognize us as a real state, not just a state in name. He says right now the Palestinian Authority is an illusion and that it has no control over anything, the crossings, the skies, the land.
Palestinian leaders say they are frustrated² by the lack of progress in the peace negotiations³ with Israel. They hope U.N. recognition will add clout⁴ to their position.
But on the streets of Jerusalem, Israelis like Yaakov Hadani believe this will hurt the talks. He says negotiating requires two partners. He says the Palestinians cannot conduct negotiations through the world instead of directly with us.
Assaf Haber, 22, has friends in the Israeli army. He is afraid it will bring more violence.
Haber says it is time for the Palestinians to have a state. He says any people that were under foreign control for a long time deserve to have a country. But not this way, he says. There should be cooperation between the two parties, not unilateral moves.
Hebrew University Professor Yaakov Bar Siman-Tov says a U.N. resolution is not likely to bring change to the streets of the Palestinian territories.
"If there is this kind of frustration⁵ between expectations and outcomes, in a very short time they will realize that we didn't achieve anything actually," Siman-Tov said. "It was a very nice declaration, etc., and then what?"
He says this could lead to demonstrations⁶ and possibly violence. He says it could also lead to Israeli sanctions. Or, he says, it could lead to a return to negotiations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose government vehemently⁷ opposes the Palestinian push for U.N. recognition, urged Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to return to direct talks.
"I'm going to the U.N. And President Abbas, Abu Mazen, is going to the U.N. We could spare the trip. It's all of 10 minutes from here to Ramallah. Let's sit down and negotiate," Netanyahu said.
Palestinian leaders broke off direct talks a year ago after Israel's 10-month moratorium⁸ on settlement building in the West Bank expired.
Mr. Abbas, before heading to New York, indicated his willingness to resume negotiations but reiterated⁹ his desire for U.N. membership.
He says we will return to negotiate on all other issues but we want, God willing, to get a full membership from the U.N. Security Council.
Ramallah-based analyst¹⁰ Hani al-Masri says the Palestinian leader should be using other tactics.
He says this choice should be part of a new strategy and not the strategy itself. Those who advocate this tactic¹¹ do not want Mr. Abbas to adopt the other tactics which, he says, are uniting the resistance, boycotting¹² Israel and rebuilding Arab support throughout the region.
Palestinians are also split over the issue. The mainstream¹³ Fatah group backs recognition. Rival Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, opposes it saying it will legitimize Israel. And with Israel strongly opposed to U.N. recognition, tensions are rising in Israel as well as in the Palestinian territories.

1 brace   

n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备

参考例句：

• My daughter has to wear a brace on her teeth. 我的女儿得戴牙套以矫正牙齿。
• You had better brace yourself for some bad news. 有些坏消息,你最好做好准备。

2 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 clout   

n.用手猛击；权力，影响力

参考例句：

• The queen may have privilege but she has no real political clout.女王有特权，但无真正的政治影响力。
• He gave the little boy a clout on the head.他在那小男孩的头部打了一下。

5 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

6 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

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 moratorium   

n.(行动、活动的)暂停(期)，延期偿付

参考例句：

• The government has called for a moratorium on weapons testing.政府已要求暂停武器试验。
• We recommended a moratorium on two particular kinds of experiments.我们建议暂禁两种特殊的实验。

9 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

10 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。

11 tactic   

n.战略，策略；adj.战术的，有策略的

参考例句：

• Reducing prices is a common sales tactic.降价是常用的销售策略。
• She had often used the tactic of threatening to resign.她惯用以辞职相威胁的手法。

12 boycotting   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They're boycotting the shop because the people there are on strike. 他们抵制那家商店，因为那里的店员在罢工。
• The main opposition parties are boycotting the elections. 主要反对党都抵制此次选举。

13 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。