
“Israel is stronger than ever!” After four years, a devastating terrorist attack, multiple wars and international opprobrium(谴责,耻辱), Israel’s prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, is nothing if not(极其,非常) bullish(乐观的,看涨的). Launching his 12th election campaign as leader of the Likud party on June 30th, he told a friendly interviewer and rapturous audience that Israel’s wars “never end. Do you want to live? In the Middle East and the world? Be strong.”(6月30日,作为利库德集团领袖,他启动了第12次竞选活动,对一位友好的采访者和狂热的听众说,以色列的战争“永无止境。你想活下去吗?在中东和全世界?那就强大起来。”) Israel is militarily and financially strong. But it is stuck.
“以色列比以往任何时候都更强大!”经历了四年、一次毁灭性的恐怖袭击、多场战争以及国际社会的谴责,以色列总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡即使不是乐观,也是信心满满。6月30日,作为利库德集团领袖,他启动了第12次竞选活动,对一位友好的采访者和狂热的听众说,以色列的战争“永无止境。你想活下去吗?在中东和全世界?那就强大起来。”以色列在军事和财政上都很强大,但它陷入了困境。
The Knesset, Israel’s parliament, is set to dissolve on July 17th. The country will vote for a new government on October 27th in one of the most consequential(重要的,有重大影响的) elections of its history. It will be voters’ first chance to pass judgment on(对…做出评判) their leaders since the terrorist attacks of October 7th 2023. But more than that, they will have to determine what kind of future they want for their country. And so far, that seems likely to be a choice between an ultranationalist(极端民族主义者) and religious coalition that insists that only hardline militarism can secure the Jewish state’s future, and a gaggle(一群(人),混乱的一群) of opposition parties offering an alternative vision that they have yet to(尚未做某事) fully define.
以色列议会(Knesset)将于7月17日解散。该国将于10月27日投票选举新政府,这将是其历史上最具决定性的选举之一。这将是选民自2023年10月7日恐怖袭击以来首次有机会对领导人做出评判。但更重要的是,他们将不得不决定自己想要怎样的国家未来。到目前为止,选择似乎是在一个极端民族主义和宗教联盟(该联盟坚持只有强硬军事主义才能保障犹太国家的未来)与一群提供尚未完全明确的替代愿景的反对党之间进行。
None of the wars triggered by the atrocities of October 7th, which were committed on Mr Netanyahu’s watch, has ended. Instead, America has imposed uneasy and inadequate ceasefires on Israel. Its army, still deployed in Gaza, southern Lebanon and Syria, is overstretched(过度消耗的,负荷过重). Israel has battered(重创,连续打击) its enemies, but Hamas in Gaza and Hizbullah in Lebanon both remain entrenched(根深蒂固的,难以拔除的) and are rearming. And over two wars, even backed by America’s military might(军事力量,武力), Israel has failed to destroy Iran’s nuclear and ballistic-missile programmes or to topple(推翻,倾覆) its regime.
由10月7日暴行引发的战争——这些暴行发生在本雅明·内塔尼亚胡的任期内——没有一场结束。相反,美国强加了令人不安且不充分的停火协议。以军仍部署在加沙、黎巴嫩南部和叙利亚,已经过度消耗。以色列重创了敌人,但加沙的哈马斯和黎巴嫩的真主党依然根深蒂固,并正在重新武装。而且在两场战争中,即使有美国军事力量的支持,以色列也未能摧毁伊朗的核计划和弹道导弹计划,也未能推翻其政权。
Behold, I will do a new thing
看哪,我要做一件新事
A mixed blessing
祸福相依

It’s not all about you, Bibi
不只是关于你,比比
