高中年级英语必看阅读材料(2)

　　高中年级英语阅读(三)

　　60 years of conflict

　　MAY 14 marks the 60th anniversary (周年) of the founding of the state of Israel. Many Israelis, however, are not in the mood to celebrate. Israel is a nation born into conflicts and a fight for its existence. For both Israelis and Palestinians the short history of Israel marks six decades of dreams and nightmares (恶梦).

　　Israel was created as a homeland for homeless Jews in the wake of World War II and the holocaust (大屠杀) where millions of Jews were killed by Nazis. The creation of Israel in what used to be Palestine left many Palestinians homeless.

　　Looking at the damage to her neighbor''s home from a Palestinian rocket, Batia Katar, a 17-year-old Israeli girl, was in tears. "We can''t celebrate (Israel''s) independence when things like this are happening," she said.

　　What is clear is that Israel is not a normal country. The country has a dramatic history and ancient culture but has only officially existed for 60 years. Within hours after its establishment in 1948, Israel was at war with its Arab neighbors for land. It won that time, and in 1956, 1967 and 1973, acquiring the West Bank, the Golan Heights, Gaza and east Jerusalem. For good or ill, Israelis can take pride in (以……自豪) victories with so many countries. However, it occupied much more land than the United Nations agreed, which left local Palestinians homeless.

　　Different from all its neighbors in religion, Israel is also far more successful economically than its neighbors. Though, it gets a great amount of support from America and other Western countries. The country is now a world leader in many industries, such as IT and modern agriculture.

　　However conflict exists, just like 60 years ago. And the signal of peace is as weak as ever. Walls being built up to keep Palestinians away from Israel, and walls in the heart have become higher and stronger. Palestinian militants (武装人员) have fired more than 7,000 missiles (导弹) from Gaza, mainly at Sderot, killing 13 people. In the same period hundreds of Palestinian civilians (平民) in Gaza have died in Israeli military action.

　　In order to create peace, the world community hopes both sides accept and follow the Middle East peace plan. Optimists believe through Israeli-Palestinian negotiations (谈判) there will finally be peace.

　　Some major questions yet to be answered are: who will control Jerusalem, and whether the Palestinians who lost their homes 60 years ago will have the right to return? When will there be an independent state of Palestine?

　　Both Israelis and Palestinians want to live in peace without explosions (爆炸) that remind them that they are living in a special but dangerous place.