VOA标准英语2010年-Ethiopian Jews Push Israel on Immigrat

The final remnants of a community of Ethiopian Jews are asking Israel to make good on a promise to allow them to immigrate¹. The so-called Falash Mura Jews accuse Israeli authorities of turning a deaf ear to their immigration requests.

Their synagogue is a plastic tent with a dirt floor behind a wall in a busy Addis Ababa neighborhood. Their rituals and dress are strikingly similar to those of the local Christian² community.

But members of this impoverished³ Jewish congregation claim to be direct descendants of Ethiopia's King Menelik I, who is believed to have been the son of Israel's King Solomon and the queen of Sheba.

Tens of thousands of Falash Mura were airlifted to Israel in two waves in the 1980s and 90s, after the Chief Rabbinate ruled they were historically Jews who had been forced to convert to Christianity. The Jewish state is currently home to an Ethiopian community of more than 100,000.

But at least 8,000 more say they are also eligible⁴ for Israeli citizenship⁵. Twenty-five-year old Misganaw Yeshiwas came to Addis Ababa 11 years ago from rural northern Ethiopia in hopes of joining relatives in Israel. He says the Israeli embassy has turned a deaf ear to his plea to be reunited with his family. "We starting the process in Israel embassy. They interview us, I interview three times, in Israel embassy, but I didn't go in Israel. I don't know why. My mother, my brother, my sisters live in Israel," he said.

The leader of Addis Ababa's Falash Mura community, Sisay Berhan says many of those left behind are dying of tuberculosis⁶ and malnutrition⁷. Several women in the congregation showed visiting foreign reporters photographs of loved ones who have died while waiting to be reunited with family members in Israel.

But the Falash Mura pose an awkward question for Israel. Public opinion is said to be divided between those who favor allowing them to immigrate, either because they were Jews by ancestry⁸, or for humanitarian⁹ reasons, and others who argue they are simply claiming to be Jewish to escape Ethiopia's grinding poverty.

Several attempts to reach the Israeli embassy in Addis Ababa for comment Tuesday were unsuccessful.

The Jerusalem Post newspaper Monday quoted Israel's Interior Minister Eli Yishai saying he would soon send a team to check the eligibility¹⁰ of 8,700 Falash Mura Jews. But the report said members of Israel's Ethiopian community had "voiced cynicism" at Yishai's promises.

The newspaper also reported some members of the Israeli Knesset had expressed frustration¹¹ at the government's apparent intransigence¹² on the Falash Mura issue. One lawmaker, Shlomo Molla, was quoted as saying, "it seems there is a clear policy not to bring more Jews from Ethiopia, and no one is willing to explain why."
 

1 immigrate   

v.（从外国）移来，移居入境

参考例句：

• 10,000 people are expected to immigrate in the next two years.接下来的两年里预计有10，000人会移民至此。
• Only few plants can immigrate to the island.只有很少的植物能够移植到这座岛上。

2 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

3 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

5 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

6 tuberculosis   

n.结核病，肺结核

参考例句：

• People used to go to special health spring to recover from tuberculosis.人们常去温泉疗养胜地治疗肺结核。
• Tuberculosis is a curable disease.肺结核是一种可治愈的病。

7 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

8 ancestry   

n.祖先，家世

参考例句：

• Their ancestry settled the land in 1856.他们的祖辈1856年在这块土地上定居下来。
• He is an American of French ancestry.他是法国血统的美国人。

9 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。

10 eligibility   

n.合格，资格

参考例句：

• What are the eligibility requirements? 病人被选参加试验的要求是什么？ 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望
• Eligibility for HINARI access is based on gross national income (GNI). 进入HINARI获取计划是依据国民总收入来评定的。

11 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。

12 intransigence   

n.妥协的态度；强硬

参考例句：

• He often appeared angry and frustrated by the intransigence of both sides.他似乎常常为双方各不相让而生气沮丧。
• Yet for North Korea,intransigence is the norm.不过对朝鲜来说，决不妥协是其一贯作风。