巴勒斯坦"偏袒"以色列

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President Abbas is 74 years old, angry about Israel's actions, unpopular because of his alliance with the Americans and with no obvious successor. Tonight, frustrated, he said the US is favouring Israelis and he's had enough. Apart from being another Palestinian political crisis, it's a serious blow to America's unravelling Mideast policy. President Obama's attempts to make peace have so far only made matters worse. Back in June in Cairo, the new president raised Palestinian hopes that he'd get them independence.

"So let there be no doubt. The situation for the Palestinian people is intolerable. And America will not turn our backs on the legitimate Palestinian aspiration for dignity, opportunity, and a state of their own."

But the humiliations continue, backed by Israeli law with more Palestinian homes demolished in occupied East Jerusalem. Settlers armed with a court order broke into this house; others have already taken over across the road. Dispossessed Palestinian families were left outside in the rain.

"They don't want to add up an Muslim. They only think to make Jerusalem it's for Jewish people."

Israel has refused months of American requests to freeze all settlement activity. A last straw for many Palestinians, including their president, was Washington's failure to stop what's happening on these streets.

So it looks as if there's a Palestinian family here suffering the tragedy of losing their home. But it's about much more than this, because for Israelis and Palestinians, there is a battle going on about the future of Jerusalem, about who controls this side of the city. And it seems a very long way from the conference rooms where diplomats talk about a peace process that doesn't actually exist.

Palestinian security forces loyal to the president are trained under American supervision. The US and Israeli military both agree that these men are working hard to keep the peace and to stop attacks on Jews. The Palestinians believe they've kept their promises and Israel has not. The whole tops along the West Bank are studded with expanding Jewish settlements, all illegal under international law. The Palestinian president who might still change his mind about going (to) call for the world to end his people's tragedy then (is) not expecting help any time soon.

Glossary [only for reference]

 favour [transitive]: to treat someone much better than someone else, in a way that is not fair

apart from: as well as

blow [countable]: an action or event that causes difficulty or sadness for someone

unravel [transitive]: to understand or explain something that is mysterious or complicated

turn your back (on somebody/something): to refuse to help, support, or be involved with someone or something

aspiration [countable usually plural, uncountable]: a strong desire to have or achieve something

humiliation [countable]: a situation that makes you feel humiliated

demolish [transitive]: to completely destroy a building

arm somebody with something: to provide somebody all the information, skills, or equipment you need to do something

court order [countable]: an order or decision made by a law court:

take over [phrasal verb]: to take control of something

add up [phrasal verb]: to calculate the total of several numbers

freeze [transitive]: to stop or limit production, use, or development of

a/the last straw: the last problem in a series of problems that finally makes you give up, get angry etc

tragedy [countable]: informal, something that seems very sad and unnecessary because something will be wasted, lost, or harmed

much more than: used to say that something happens to a greater degree

peace process: a term used within the international development community to describe the processes and activities involved in resolving violent conflict and establishing a sustainable peace

loyal to: always supporting your friends, principles, country etc

stud [transitive]: to be scattered over the expanse or surface of

not any time soon: not very soon