经济学人437:加沙停火 没有赢家的战争

 　　Ceasefire in Gaza

　　加沙停火

　　A war without winners

　　没有赢家的战争

　　Sadly, the end of the fighting is unlikely to mark the beginning of the peace

　　很遗憾，战斗结束并不就意味着和平到来

　　THE chances are that the latest of more than half a dozen ceasefires inGazawill hold—at least for a month or so, while the sides talk. The pause may even guide the Gazans and the Israelis to a more lasting¹ accommodation. Yet the skies have fallen silent out of exhaustion² and the futility³ of fighting on, rather than because the conflict has reached a resolution. Barring an unlikely change of heart—on both sides—war will probably begin all over again, sooner or later.

　　加沙已经停火许多次了，在各方都在谈判时，最近的一次停火很可能维持下去，至少能维持一个月左右。这次停火也许能让加沙人和以色列人走向更持续的和解。然而，天空之所以静下来，不是因为冲突已经解决，而是因为大家精疲力竭，战斗徒劳无用。双方的心意都不大可能改变，战争很可能会再次开始，这是迟早的事。

　　More than 2,100 people have died in the tiny enclave, most of them civilians⁴ and many of them children. At least 230,000 of Gaza's 1.8m people have been displaced, says the UN. The likelihood that this war just sets up the next renders their suffering even more tragic⁵. Hospitals, schools and the main electricity plant may take years to rebuild, only to be smashed yet again. The sole glimmer⁶ is that this bleak⁷ picture may concentrate minds to seek the distant prospect⁸ of two states—Israeland Palestine—living side by side in peace (see article).

　　在加沙这块狭小的飞地上，已经有超过2100人丧生，大多数是平民，许多是还是孩子。联合国称，加沙180万居民中，至少有23万失去家园，背井离乡。战争再次爆发的可能，使他们原来就痛苦生活，变得更加悲惨。医院，学校，主要发电厂也许要花数年才能重建，而重建后又可能再次被毁。唯一的希望在于，这苍凉黯淡的图景，能让大家专注起来，寻求两个国家和平共处的遥远前景。

　　加沙停火.jpg

　　No one has emerged from the battle stronger. On the Israeli side, Binyamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, says that he has clobbered⁹ Hamas, the hardline Islamists who run the strip, and won this latest round by stopping the firing of rockets atIsraeland by unearthing¹⁰ the cross-border tunnels intended to enable raiding parties to seize or murder Israelis.

　　没人从争斗中变强。就以色列而言，本雅明·内塔尼亚胡总理说他已痛击了哈马斯，阻止了他们朝以色列发射火箭，破坏了让哈马斯突击队能绑架和杀害以色列人的隧道，因此赢了这一轮。

　　If so, he has paid a heavy price. War has weakened an already slowing economy. He is under attack at home from even more hawkish¹¹ rivals within his coalition¹², who argue that he could have destroyed Hamas completely—though that would entail¹³ heavy casualties and a ruinous occupation, orGaza quite possibly falling into the hands of another Islamist group. Worse, each timeIsrael bombsGaza, its reputation ebbs¹⁴ in the rest of the world, where the media carry images of suffering children and smashed streets. EvenIsrael's vital American allies have shown rare irritation¹⁵.

　　如果真是这样，他的代价也不菲。战争削弱了本就不振的经济。内塔尼亚胡在国内备受抨击，甚至是他党内更加强硬的对手都在抨击他，批评他没有彻底消灭哈马斯，虽然要做到这一点必然得付出巨大伤亡，占领的也只是一片焦土，而且加沙很可能会落到另一个伊斯兰组织手中。更糟糕的是，每次以色列轰炸加沙，它的国家声誉就会严重受损，痛苦的孩子和破碎的街道的图片充斥在各大媒体。即使是以色列的铁杆盟友美国，也罕见的显示出不耐烦。

　　Meanwhile, Hamas is stuck up a cul-de-sac. It has claimed victory—because it is still standing¹⁶. And it is true that its grip onGaza, which was weakening before the fighting, still looks secure. But its main policy of sterile¹⁷ resistance toIsraelleads nowhere and comes at the expense of the lives and prosperity of ordinary Gazans. Palestinians should query¹⁸ the common sense, let alone the morality, of Hamas firing its fairly useless rockets randomly¹⁹ intoIsraelif the result is destruction forGazaon such a scale.

　　同时，哈马斯也被困在死巷当中。哈马斯声称已经获得了胜利—因为它依然存在。确实，哈马斯对加沙的控制看起来依然稳固，而在开战之前，哈马斯对加沙的控制力似乎是在减弱。但哈马斯坚决对抗以色列的主要政策没有前途，而且会以牺牲普通加沙人的生活和繁荣为代价。哈马斯胡乱朝以色列发射火箭，根本没什么用处，其后果是对加沙如此大规模的破坏，巴勒斯坦人应该问问，这么做究竟有没有常识，更不要说合不合乎道义。

　　Crumb²⁰ of comfort

　　些许安慰

　　Can anything good be salvaged²¹ from the rubble²²? This war has been bad even for the people who stayed out of it.Israel's moderates have not gained noticeably from Mr Netanyahu's travails²³. Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the more moderate Palestinians, is painted by his own people as an Israeli stooge, sapping his strength as a negotiating partner. But at least he still presides over a unity²⁴ government that is committed to peace and is still—remarkably enough—backed by Hamas. He could press Hamas to disarm²⁵ in exchange for a programme to rebuildGaza, with a neutral force overseeing the process. Or how about another crack at good-faith talks about two states? The ground has been dug over so often, including byAmericain the past, that progress could in theory be rapid.

　　能从瓦砾中挖出什么有用的东西吗？这场战争，即使是对置身事外的人而言，都已经够糟糕的了。以色列温和派没能从内塔尼亚胡的行动中得到什么。巴勒斯坦温和派领导人穆罕默德·阿巴斯，则被自己人说成是以色列的傀儡，削弱了他作为谈判人的实力。但是，至少，阿巴斯领导着一个致力于和平的联合政府，而且跟不可思议地拥有哈马斯的支持。阿巴斯可以对哈马斯施压，要他们放弃武力，以换取对加沙的重建计划，重建进程将由中立力量监督。或者，干脆再推动两国的诚意谈判怎么样？谈判的基础早就有了，而且之前也有过很多次努力，包括美国在过去所做的许多工作，理论上说，谈判进程可以进行得很快。

　　It is not the ideas of well-meaning outsiders that are lacking, but the readiness ofIsraeland Hamas to strive for peace. Sadly, even with a ceasefire, that prospect still looks very distant.

　　身在局外，但用意良好的人并不少，但以色列和哈马斯走向和平的意愿却不足。遗憾的是，即使实现了停火，和平的前景依旧渺茫。

1 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

2 exhaustion   

n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述

参考例句：

• She slept the sleep of exhaustion.她因疲劳而酣睡。
• His exhaustion was obvious when he fell asleep standing.他站着睡着了，显然是太累了。

3 futility   

n.无用

参考例句：

• She could see the utter futility of trying to protest. 她明白抗议是完全无用的。
• The sheer futility of it all exasperates her. 它毫无用处，这让她很生气。

4 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

5 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

6 glimmer   

v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光

参考例句：

• I looked at her and felt a glimmer of hope.我注视她，感到了一线希望。
• A glimmer of amusement showed in her eyes.她的眼中露出一丝笑意。

7 bleak   

adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的

参考例句：

• They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。
• The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

8 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

9 clobbered   

v.狠揍， （不停）猛打( clobber的过去式和过去分词 )；彻底击败

参考例句：

• The paper got clobbered with libel damages of half a million pounds. 这家报纸被罚以五十万英镑的诽谤损害赔偿金。
• The robbers clobbered the shopkeeper to make him open the safe. 强盗们殴打店主迫使他打开保险箱。 来自辞典例句

10 unearthing   

发掘或挖出某物( unearth的现在分词 )； 搜寻到某事物，发现并披露

参考例句：

• And unearthing the past often means literally and studying the evidence. 通常，探寻往事在字面上即意味着——刨根究底。
• The unearthing of "Peking Man" was a remarkable discovery. “北京人”的出土是个非凡的发现。

11 hawkish   

adj. 鹰派的, 强硬派的

参考例句：

• My staff's advice that first day was amazingly hawkish. 在第一天，我的僚属们的意见是令人吃惊的鹰派意见。
• Antiwar groups fear Barack Obama may create hawkish Cabinet. 反战团体担心巴拉克·奥巴马可以创建强硬派内阁。

12 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

13 entail   

vt.使承担，使成为必要，需要

参考例句：

• Such a decision would entail a huge political risk.这样的决定势必带来巨大的政治风险。
• This job would entail your learning how to use a computer.这工作将需要你学会怎样用计算机。

14 ebbs   

退潮( ebb的名词复数 )； 落潮； 衰退

参考例句：

• When the tide ebbs it's a rock pool inhabited by crustaceans. 退潮时，它便成为甲壳动物居住的岩石区潮水潭。
• The new Russia steadily ebbs away drive out of Moscow. 驶离莫斯科愈来愈远以后，俄罗斯崭新的景象也逐渐消失。

15 irritation   

n.激怒，恼怒，生气

参考例句：

• He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。
• Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说，但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。

16 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

17 sterile   

adj.不毛的，不孕的，无菌的，枯燥的，贫瘠的

参考例句：

• This top fits over the bottle and keeps the teat sterile.这个盖子严实地盖在奶瓶上，保持奶嘴无菌。
• The farmers turned the sterile land into high fields.农民们把不毛之地变成了高产田。

18 query   

n.疑问，问号，质问；vt.询问，表示怀疑

参考例句：

• I query very much whether it is wise to act so hastily.我真怀疑如此操之过急地行动是否明智。
• They raised a query on his sincerity.他们对他是否真诚提出质疑。

19 randomly   

adv.随便地，未加计划地

参考例句：

• Within the hot gas chamber, molecules are moving randomly in all directions. 在灼热的气体燃烧室内，分子在各个方向上作无规运动。 来自辞典例句
• Transformed cells are loosely attached, rounded and randomly oriented. 转化细胞则不大贴壁、圆缩并呈杂乱分布。 来自辞典例句

20 crumb   

n.饼屑，面包屑，小量

参考例句：

• It was the only crumb of comfort he could salvage from the ordeal.这是他从这场磨难里能找到的唯一的少许安慰。
• Ruth nearly choked on the last crumb of her pastry.鲁斯几乎被糕点的最后一块碎屑所噎住。

21 salvaged   

（从火灾、海难等中）抢救（某物）( salvage的过去式和过去分词 )； 回收利用（某物）

参考例句：

• The investigators studied flight recorders salvaged from the wreckage. 调查者研究了从飞机残骸中找到的黑匣子。
• The team's first task was to decide what equipment could be salvaged. 该队的首要任务是决定可以抢救哪些设备。

22 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

23 travails   

n.艰苦劳动( travail的名词复数 )；辛勤努力；痛苦；分娩的阵痛

参考例句：

• In the and travails of businesses you'll always need hometown help. 就算你的业务扩大到其他城市，也不要忘了你的发源地。 来自互联网
• Tata Motor's travails with Land Rover and Jaguar spring to mind as recent less-than-favorable examples. 印度塔塔汽车公司对陆虎和捷豹品牌的辛苦收购就是最近一个不如人意的例子。 来自互联网

24 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

25 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。