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  3. "There is no real border between Israel and Palestine," says Muhammad Hamudi,

"There is no real border between Israel and Palestine," says Muhammad Hamudi,

游客2023-12-26  11
问题    "There is no real border between Israel and Palestine," says Muhammad Hamudi, an olive farmer and olive oil producer from Asira al-Shamaliya, near Nablus in the West Bank. He has been working with the ongoing USAID-funded project Olive Oil Without Borders (OOWB) since its start in 2011. Hamudi is in his mid-50s, with smiling eyes and palms so big that an olive looks tiny in them. "Today the border is here, tomorrow it will be there. The olive oil market has no borders as well. The bridge to the global market is the same bridge for everyone."
   OOWB is a collaborative economic initiative among 34 olive oil farming communities in Israel and the West Bank. It is spearheaded by the Near East Foundation (NEF), a 100-year-old nongovernmental organization working on economic development among poverty-stricken communities throughout Africa and the Middle East. The initiative is funded by USAID, which provides financial and operative assistance to foreign nations and regions in need. The program has been successful enough that USAID has just granted OOWB its second US$1.2 million round of funding, expected to serve some 2,000 Palestinians and Israelis working in the olive oil business over the course of three years.
   Hamudi, one of the project’s success stories, points out Salah Abu-Eisheh, NEF country director for the Palestinian authority. "During the three-year run, he has tripled his production, improved significantly the quality and purity of his olive oil, and increased his income." Hamudi smiles when he hears Abu-Eisheh say this. "NEF helped me achieve a sustained level of productivity," Hamudi says. "No more bad years and good years; now I am in control of the yield."
   This success is due in large part to direct grants farmers like Hamudi received for purchasing modern equipment, renovating facilities (such as mills), and planting new varieties of olive trees. The rest of the USAID funding goes to conducting seminars and hands-on workshops led by industry consultants, from agriculture and olive oil production to business management and marketing.
   Yet Palestinian farmers are only half of the OOWB equation: Israeli farmers and producers provide the necessary cross-border collaboration for this innovative and seemingly conflict-free program.
   When I ask Hamudi about his experience collaborating with his Israeli-Jewish counterparts, his answer is pragmatic. "I see it as an exchange. We have things to teach, and they have things to teach. They use modern techniques, we have experience and knowledge. The benefits are for both sides. We have no other choices."
   But for a region stuck in political conflict, collaborating is a choice — and quite an unusual one. Ayala Noy, a 40-year-old farmer and producer from the Israeli side, approaches the project from a different perspective: "It was a very important and empowering experience. Sitting down with a Palestinian farmer who tells me, with tears in his eyes, that his orchard was burned to the ground the previous night by Israeli settlers was very emotional for me. ’How do you sleep at night?’ he asked me. I told him not very well. That was the biggest challenge for me — being a representative of Israel, dealing with the hard feelings they have toward us."
   Although one of OOWB’s stated goals is to "leverage economic cooperation to promote peace and reconciliation," according to NEF President Charlie Benjamin, the organization approaches its work from "a completely depoliticized perspective." The focus is on "building economic relationships. We don’t touch the border issue." At the same time, Benjamin does acknowledge the growing trust, communication, and interaction outside the program.
   Noy agrees that the project has strengthened more than economic ties. "We brought Palestinians to our house, we showed them our mill, and we try to keep in touch by phone," she says. "I think it gave them a chance to see ’other’ Israelis. Many of them told me that was their first time to meet an Israeli who is not a soldier, or a settler." [br] According to Paragraph 2, which of the following statements is NOT true of NEF?
选项 A、It is a part of the Israeli government.
B、It has a history of 100 years.
C、It aims at reducing poverty.
D、It produces great results.
答案 A
解析 推断题。第2段第2句表明，NEF为非政府组织，已有100年历史，专门针对贫困地区，由此排除表述正确的B(它有100年历史)和C(它的目的是减少贫困)。A(它是以色列政府的一部分)与NEF为非政府组织的描述相矛盾，保留该选项。第2段第4句The program has been successful enough that…表明，由其资助的项目非常成功，由此排除D(NEF取得了重大成果)。最终确定A为正确答案。第2段涉及几个长难句，考生平时应注重此类句子的语法结构分析，提高阅读理解能力。e.g. It is spearheaded by the Near East Foundation (NEF), a 100-year-old nongovernmental organization working on economic development among poverty-stricken communities throughout Africa and the Middle East.译文：该项目由近东基金会(NEF)牵头。近东基金会是一个有着百年历史的非政府组织，致力于帮助非洲和中东的贫困地区发展经济。本句中画下划线的部分为NEF的同位语，画波浪线的部分为现在分词短语作organization的后置定语，表明该组织的工作方向。整句的主语it指代的是前文提到的OOWB。同位语结构中的核心词为organization，对应NEF，之前的形容词100-year-old和nongovernmental作定语，描述了该组织的历史和性质。在长难句中，根据上下文厘清句子中代词和名词的指代及对应关系，对于理解句意也至关重要。比如，第2段第4句中的“The program”实际上指的就是前文提及的由USAID资助的initiative，即，OOWB(橄榄油无国界项目)。
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