VOA标准英语2013--Syrian Refugees Find Warm Welcome in Egypt

 

Syrian Refugees Find Warm Welcome in Egypt

Wael Mustafa left Syria last year with his family, his cooking skills and little else.After abandoning his devastated¹ home on the outskirts² of Damascus, Mustafa, his wife, children and aging parents spent months seeking safety in one town after another. But war always followed. So they fled to Beirut, then on to Cairo.

"Here I start from the zero," Mustafa said. He is one of the lucky ones.

"Because here everything is easy," he added. "The people are easy. To find job easy. To move here easy.”

The restaurant Mustafa works in is in “Little Syria,” a neighborhood in a desert city west of Cairo. He is one of 140,000 Syrian refugees in Egypt, nearly half of whom are registering with the United Nations refugee program.

Most are opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Shops include “The Bakery of the Revolution.”

But Mustafa deflected³ questions about the politics of the conflict, now in its third year.

"Nobody knows who will win. Until now, nobody wins," he said. "All the people - Syrians - now lose."

Many refugees manage only to make it across the border, landing in camps in Jordan or other neighboring countries, proving a strain to their hosts.

Said Sadek of the American University in Cairo said that is not the case with refugees in Egypt.

"They are not fighters. They are just middle-class-income people who had to escape from the atrocities⁴ and the violence. And it is a second home,” said Sadek.

Egypt and Syria were once bound in the United Arab Republic, and family, cultural and Sunni religious ties run deep. The government treats them far differently than exiles from Iraq, Sudan or Palestinian lands.

"Thanks [be to] God we have the Egyptian government who had decided⁵ to grant them access to public schools since last September, in addition to the access of all Syrians in Egypt to public health facilities,” said Mohamed Dayri, the regional representative for the United Nations High Commissioner⁶ for Refugees.

But some worry how long the goodwill⁷ can last. Egypt has troubles of its own. And with the devastation⁸ of Syria so thorough, refugees, Mustafa among them, are uncertain when they can return.

"I don't know. I don't know," he said. "I hope I will not stay here too much but I think it will be a bit more. About 20 years or more.”

That's a prospect⁹ daunting¹⁰ to all concerned. 

1 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

2 outskirts   

n.郊外，郊区

参考例句：

• Our car broke down on the outskirts of the city.我们的汽车在市郊出了故障。
• They mostly live on the outskirts of a town.他们大多住在近郊。

3 deflected   

偏离的

参考例句：

• The ball deflected off Reid's body into the goal. 球打在里德身上反弹进球门。
• Most of its particles are deflected. 此物质的料子大多是偏斜的。

4 atrocities   

n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪

参考例句：

• They were guilty of the most barbarous and inhuman atrocities. 他们犯有最野蛮、最灭绝人性的残暴罪行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The enemy's atrocities made one boil with anger. 敌人的暴行令人发指。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

7 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

8 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 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。

10 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。