2026-04-05 09:57 美东夏令时 / 哥伦比亚广播公司新闻
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赛斯·多恩 特约记者
赛斯·多恩自2016年起驻意大利罗马，是屡获殊荣的哥伦比亚广播公司新闻特约记者。他曾报道欧洲各地的恐怖袭击和突发新闻，随教皇方济各报道梵蒂冈事务，还就移民、气候变化等议题进行过报道。
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在朱迪亚沙漠中，一段复杂的过往正被发掘出来，映照进当下纷乱的时局。这座位于塔拉阿特·达姆（Tala’at Ad-Dam）的遗址，坐落于一条通往耶路撒冷的古老朝圣路线旁，传说耶稣的父母曾途经此处。
在当时，这片土地被称为朱迪亚，得名于后来被称为犹太人的族群。数个世纪以来，它先后被不同信仰的帝国征服。这里至少拥有5000处考古遗址，这片区域通常被称为西岸，也有人用其古老的或圣经中的名字——朱迪亚和撒马利亚来称呼它。联合国将其视为被占领的巴勒斯坦领土。
埃亚勒·弗雷曼是以色列朱迪亚和撒马利亚民政管理局考古事务副参谋军官，他十分清楚在此开展发掘工作的复杂性。“我不会基于政治观点行事，”他表示，“如果我们不发掘这座遗址，它恐怕早就被掩埋得只剩一半了。”
西岸塔拉阿特·达姆的考古发掘现场。哥伦比亚广播公司新闻 摄
当被问及作为身处巴勒斯坦土地上的以色列人，他的工作是否本身就带有政治色彩时，弗雷曼回应道：“我只是民政管理局的一名雇员。我的工作是保护、保存所有考古遗址，并让它们可供公众参观。”
但这是为谁服务？这正是塔尔亚·埃兹拉希提出的疑问。“考古学已经成为证明‘我们曾在此处’的一种手段，”她说，“所以每当我们发掘地下文物时，我们总是希望找到能表明以色列土地上曾有犹太人生活的证据——以此宣称‘我们才是最早的定居者’。”
埃兹拉希就职于左翼以色列考古组织“埃梅克·沙维夫”（Emek Shaveh）。她声称，考古学已被武器化，用于将部分土地划为巴勒斯坦人不得进入的区域：“它被用于服务定居点的扩张和巩固，不断宣称更多曾属于巴勒斯坦的土地归我们所有。”
以先知撒母耳墓遗址为例，这里被认为是公元前一千年撒母耳先知的安葬地。当地一座巴勒斯坦村庄被拆除，为后来的旅游景点让路。
艾德·巴拉卡特的房屋被拆除后，被迫从这里搬迁。自1971年起，他一直住在临时住所里，因为他声称自己无法获得建筑许可。以色列目前正拨款近1亿美元，部分用于开发西岸的考古和旅游景点。
当被问及巴拉卡特曾经居住的土地被发掘是否是件好事时，埃兹拉希回答道：“首先，这是一处非常棒的遗址。但与此同时，遗址中一个非常重要的篇章被遗漏了，那就是曾在此居住的巴勒斯坦村庄的故事。”
塞巴斯蒂亚
我们在西岸城镇塞巴斯蒂亚会见了以色列考古学家阿迪·施拉盖，这里曾是以色列王国的首都。“仅仅因为有人决定在上面建造，历史的众多部分就被彻底抹去了，”她说。
施拉盖表示，保护这些古代遗址对全人类都有益处。她隶属于名为“守护永恒”（Preserving the Eternal）的以色列考古组织，该组织在西岸开展工作。“100年来，这座遗址从未得到过 proper 的发掘，也没有学术研究，”她说。
但发掘工作能否完全与当下的政治现实脱钩？“政治现实是，遗址正在遭到破坏，”施拉盖说。
该组织认定了一批需要保护的考古遗址，包括这座拥有两千多年历史的古剧院。
考古学家阿迪·施拉盖与记者赛斯·多恩在西岸城镇塞巴斯蒂亚的一座古剧院中。哥伦比亚广播公司新闻 摄
但要抵达这里，以色列人不得不驾车绕开巴勒斯坦城镇，走非铺装道路，因为局势高度紧张。
当被问及以色列人在此开展的发掘是否等同于在西岸抢占土地时，施拉盖回应道：“我的主要任务是确保这些遗址安全、得到保护和保存。如果巴勒斯坦权力机构能够做到这一点，那再好不过。但遗憾的是，他们没有这么做。”
扎伊德·阿扎里表示，他的家族至少已经在塞巴斯蒂亚生活了20代人。他以带领游客参观这些遗址为生，包括这座剧院。作为一名巴勒斯坦人，他说当以色列人在遗址上工作时，他不被允许靠近。
“以色列人不允许我们在这座遗址内工作，”他说，“如果你开始在这里工作，你会看到头顶上有无人机。士兵会来，定居者也会来。”
巴勒斯坦导游扎伊德·阿扎里。哥伦比亚广播公司新闻 摄
去年11月，以色列发布土地征用令，接管了塞巴斯蒂亚超过300英亩的土地。阿扎里表示，这将切断该镇与他们的遗产、农田以及经济主要支柱的联系。“这纯粹是为了控制土地、窃取土地，”他说。
对于那些声称这只是关乎考古学、并无政治目的的以色列人，阿扎里说：“这完全是政治行为。数千年来，我们一直在保护自己的文化和遗址。”
拉菲·格林伯格是特拉维夫大学考古学教授，同时也是“埃梅克·沙维夫”组织的联合创始人。“我曾以为考古学只关乎事实，”他说，“文物本身其实并不属于过去，它们存在于当下。”
他回忆起自己还是学生时首次研究文物的情景：“它们摆在我们的桌子上，看着我们。我们看着它们。除非我们赋予它们意义，否则这些证据碎片毫无意义。”
格林伯格说，考古学就是讲故事，这一点在大卫城遗址体现得淋漓尽致。以色列考古学家坚信，大卫城就是以色列最强大的国王在公元前一千年建立的都城。1980年，哥伦比亚广播公司的鲍勃·西蒙到访此处时，格林伯格正在此地进行发掘工作。当时西蒙报道称，联合国谴责以色列考古学家在被其称为“占领领土”的区域进行挖掘。
如今，大卫城已成为一座国家公园，里面甚至设有滑索项目。
“这后来成了一种模板，”格林伯格说……他认为，这种模板在某种程度上是一个“定居者项目”，也是其他考古遗址的路线图。
在邻近的锡勒万社区，数十户巴勒斯坦家庭已被驱逐，或正面临驱逐程序。（以色列当局表示，他们只会拆除没有合法许可的建筑，且所有法律程序都已走完。）
格林伯格说：“他们利用文物和对文物的管控，将耶路撒冷该区域的不同地点连接起来，阻止巴勒斯坦人扩大居住范围。他们的最终目的是将巴勒斯坦人赶走。”
大卫城
我们希望听到以色列政府高层对这些指控的看法，于是在大卫城会见了以色列遗产部长阿米查伊·埃利亚胡。“我们实质上正踩在整个圣经所基于的故事之上，”他对我们说。
这位属于极右翼政治派系的部长带我们参观了古老的城市引水渠，途中他从夹克口袋里掏出一枚他称之为“神奇”的戒指：“为什么神奇？因为它在地下沉睡了2000年，”他解释道。
这枚戒指是在西岸的基利心山发现的。上面刻有希伯来文的犹太教最神圣祈祷文《示玛》。“如果有人问，这片土地是我们的吗？这就是最简单也最动人的证据，”他说。
在整个遗址中，大卫王统治时期的故事都与考古发现紧密相连。
大卫城的一处发掘现场，出土了可追溯至3800年前的遗迹。哥伦比亚广播公司新闻 摄
我们问道：“那巴勒斯坦人的故事呢？哪怕是曾经居住在这里的巴勒斯坦人？”
“根据历史记载，并不存在巴勒斯坦民族，”这位部长说，“我们不知道巴勒斯坦的国王是谁。这个民族是60年前才被发明出来的。”
这让我们想起在塞巴斯蒂亚时听到的内容，当时扎伊德·阿扎里带我们去看一块牌匾，上面完全没有提及塞巴斯蒂亚曾是以色列王国的首都。
我们问道：“似乎双方都在抹去历史。在这里，你们没有提及这座城镇的犹太历史。”
“我们这里谈论的是一个特定时期，”阿扎里回应道。
“你们提到了希律王、罗马统治者，提到了迦南人，但却遗漏了以色列人。”
“说这是一个犹太王国或犹太城市，并不准确，”阿扎里说，“这是我的遗产。这不是犹太复国主义的历史或文化，这是我的。”
“这是我的”——这是我们在双方口中反复听到的话。
当被问及“埃梅克·沙维夫”组织称以色列对西岸考古遗址的管控本质上是一种领土主张时，遗产部长埃利亚胡回应道：“‘埃梅克·沙维夫’组织是否认同这些历史遗址属于犹太人民的历史？如果答案是肯定的，那么我们必须保护这些遗址。如果答案是否定的，那就让他们证明这片土地属于巴勒斯坦人民。就目前而言，没有任何证据。”
在拉菲·格林伯格教授看来，这种态度是“另一种武器化手段。也就是说，你赋予某些类型的遗产更高的重要性，而对其他类型的遗产则不予重视。”
1948年以色列建国时，第一任总理本-古里安就曾谈到考古学对以色列国家的重要性。“每个民族都需要一个统一的神话，一种能让所有人团结起来，认同一个属于他们自己的故事的东西，”格林伯格说。他坚称，尽管有人试图将考古学打造成一部民族叙事，但考古学通常指向的是一段共同的历史——在塔拉阿特·达姆的朝圣路线发掘现场，埃亚勒·弗雷曼向我们展示的正是这样一段历史。
“我们有犹太文化，有基督教文化，也有伊斯兰文化，”弗雷曼说，“它们全都融合在一起。有些遗址最初属于一种文化，后来又归属另一种文化。有时候事情并不像你看到的那样非黑即白。”
埃亚勒·弗雷曼向赛斯·多恩展示在塔拉阿特·达姆遗址出土的陶片。哥伦比亚广播公司新闻 摄
确切地说，这些发现不过是布满灰尘的灰褐色遗迹。它们是历史延续性的一部分……透过当下的视角，瞥见另一个时代的迷人碎片。
How archaeology turns political in the West Bank
2026-04-05 09:57 EDT / CBS News
By
Seth Doane Correspondent
Seth Doane is an award-winning CBS News correspondent based in Rome, Italy since 2016. Doane has covered terrorist attacks and breaking news across Europe, traveled with Pope Francis as part of his coverage of the Vatican, and has reported on issues ranging from migration to climate change.
Read Full Bio
In the Judean desert, a complex past is being unearthed into a complicated present. This site, at Tala’at Ad-Dam, sits along an ancient pilgrimage route to Jerusalem, one Jesus’ parents were said to have walked.
Back then, this land was called Judea, after the people who would become known as the Jews. Over the centuries, it would be conquered by empires of varying beliefs. It’s one of at least 5,000 archaeological sites here, a place most commonly known as the West Bank. Some call it by its ancient or Biblical name — Judea and Samaria. The U.N. says it’s occupied Palestinian territory.
Eyal Freiman, deputy staff officer for archeology of Israel’s Civil Administration of Judea and Samaria, knows well the complexity of performing excavations here. “I don’t act by political views,” he said. “If we weren’t excavating this site, it would probably be half-buried.”
An archaeological dig at Tala’at Ad-Dam in the West Bank. CBS News
Asked if his role was inherently political, being an Israeli on Palestinian land, Freiman replied, “I’m just an employee of a civil administration. My job is to protect, preserve, and make approachable all the archaeological sites.”
But for whom? That’s the question Talya Ezrahi raises. “Archaeology has become a way of proving that we were here,” she said. “So, whenever we look in the ground, we’re always hoping to find something that has some indication of Jewish life in the land of Israel” – to make the claim we were here first.
Ezrahi is with the left-wing Israeli archeology group Emek Shaveh. She claims archaeology has been weaponized to make certain lands off-bounds to Palestinians: “It’s been weaponized in the service of enhancing and entrenching settlements and claiming more and more lands that were once Palestinian lands,” she said.
Take Nebi Samuel, where it’s believed the prophet Samuel was buried a thousand years before Christ. A Palestinian village was dismantled to make way for what’s become a tourist site.
Eid Barakat was forced to move from here when his house was demolished. He’s been in temporary housing since 1971, because he claims he cannot get a building permit. Israel is now allocating nearly $100 million in part to develop archeological and tourism sites in the West Bank.
Asked whether it was good that the land where Barakat once lived has been excavated, Ezrahi replied, “First of all, it is a beautiful site. But at the same time, there is a very important chapter of the site that is missing, and that is the story of the Palestinian village that lived here.”
Sebastia
We met Israeli archeologist Adi Shragai in the West Bank town of Sebastia, what was once the capital city of the Kingdom of Israel. “So many parts of history were completely erased just because someone decided to come and build on top of it,” she said.
Shragai says humanity benefits when these ancient sites are protected. She’s part of an Israeli archaeology group called Preserving the Eternal, which works in the West Bank. “For 100 years, there hasn’t been proper excavations in this site, [or] academic research,” she said.
But can performing excavation be completely divorced from today’s political realities? “The political reality is that sites are being destroyed,” Shragai said.
The group identifies archeological sites they deem need preservation, including this theater, which is more than two thousand years old.
Archeologist Adi Shragai and correspondent Seth Doane at an ancient theater in the West Bank town of Sebastia. CBS News
But to get here, the Israelis had to drive off-road around the Palestinian town, because tensions are so high.
Asked if such excavations by Israelis amount to a land grab on the West Bank, Shragai replied, “My main mission is to have these sites safe, protected and preserved. If it were to be done by the Palestinian Authority, fine. But unfortunately, they don’t do that.”
Zaid Azhari says his family has lived in Sebastia for at least 20 generations. He makes a living giving tours of these sites, including the theater. As a Palestinian, he says he’s not allowed near them when the Israelis are working the site.
“The Israelis are not allowing us to work inside this site,” he said. “If you start working here, you will see the drones above you. The soldiers will come. The settlers will come.”
Palestinian tour guide Zaid Azhari. CBS News
In November, Israel issued a land expropriation order to take control of more than 300 acres of Sebastia. Azhari says this would sever the town from their heritage, farmland, and a major part of their economy. “It’s just about controlling land, stealing land,” he said.
To Israelis who say this is simply about archaeology and is not political, Azhari said, “This is totally political. We protect our culture and our ruins since thousands of years.”
Rafi Greenberg is a professor of archeology at Tel Aviv University, and is co-founder of the group Emek Shaveh. “I thought that archeology was going to be only about facts,” he said. “The finds themselves are not actually in the past, they’re in the present.”
He remembers being a student first studying artifacts: “They’re on our table, they’re looking at us. We’re looking at them. And those pieces of evidence don’t add up to anything unless we make them add up to something.”
Archeology is storytelling, Greenberg says, which is exemplified at the City of David, the site where Israeli archaeologists are convinced Israel’s most powerful king built his capital a thousand years before Christ. Greenberg was excavating there around the same time CBS’ Bob Simon visited in 1980. Then, Simon reported that the United Nations condemned Israeli archaeologists for digging in what the U.N. called Occupied Territory.
Today, the City of David is a national park, complete with a zip-line.
“So, that became sort of a blueprint,” Greenberg said … a blueprint which, he argues, is partly a “settler project,” and a roadmap for other archaeological sites.
In neighboring Silwan, dozens of Palestinian families have been displaced, or have eviction proceedings against them. (Israeli authorities say they only demolish structures without proper permits and after all legal proceedings are exhausted.)
Greenberg said, “They’re using the antiquities and the control of antiquities to connect different points within that part of Jerusalem, to prevent Palestinians from expanding their footprint. And their eventual aim is to drive them out.”
City of David
We wanted to hear what someone at the top of Israel’s government thought about these allegations, and met Israel’s Minister of Heritage Amichai Eliyahu at the City of David. “We are essentially stepping on the story that the entire Bible is based on,” he told us.
The minister, who is part of a far-right political faction, took us down to the old city aqueducts, at one point stopping to pull what he called a “magical’ ring out of his jacket pocket: “Why magical? Because it has been waiting in the ground for 2,000 years,” he explained.
It was found on Mount Gerizim in the West Bank. Engraved, in Hebrew, is Judaism’s holiest prayer, the shema. “If people ask, is this land ours? Here is the simplest and most moving proof,” he said.
Throughout the site, stories from the reign of King David are connected to the archaeology.
An excavation at the City of David, of ruins dating back 3,800 years. CBS News
We asked, “What about the story of the Palestinians, even the Palestinians who once lived here?”
“So, according to history, there was no Palestinian people,” the minister said. “We don’t know who the Palestinian king was. It’s a people that was invented 60 years ago.”
That made us think of something we’d heard back in Sebastia, when Zaid Azhari took us to see a plaque, which made no mention that Sebastia had been the capital city of the Kingdom of Israel.
We asked, “It seems like on both sides there’s an erasure of history. Here you don’t include a Jewish history here in this town.”
“Here we are talking about a period,” Azhari replied.
“You mention Herod, the Roman leader. You mention the Canaanites. But there is missing the Israelites.”
“To say this is a Jewish kingdom or a Jewish city, it’s not really that correct,” Azhari said. “This is my heritage. This is not the Zionist history or culture, this is mine.”
This is mine – that’s what we kept hearing on both sides.
When he asked Heritage Minister Eliyahu about the Israeli group Emek Shaveh’s statement that Israeli control of archeological sites in the West Bank is in essence a land claim, he responded, “Does Emek Shaveh agree that these historical sites belong to the history of the Jewish people? If the answer is yes, then we must preserve these sites. And if the answer is no, then let them prove it belongs to the Palestinian people. For now, there is no proof.”
To professor Rafi Greenberg, that attitude is “another way of weaponizing. That is, you attach more importance to certain kind of heritage, and less importance to other kinds of heritage.”
When Israel was founded in 1948, the first prime minister Ben Gurion talked about how important archeology was to the state of Israel itself. “Every nation needs a unifying myth, something that will bring everyone together to relate to one story that is their story,” Greenberg said. He insists that despite efforts to turn archaeology into a national story, it’s usually one of a shared history — a history which was on display back at that pilgrimage route excavation with Eyal Freiman.
“We have the Jewish culture, we have the Christian culture, we have the Muslim cultures,” Freiman said. “It is all combined. Sites that started as one and ended as another. Sometimes it’s not as black-and-white as you see.”
Eyal Freiman shows Seth Doane tiles uncovered at the Tala’at Ad-Dam site. CBS News
Rather, these discoveries can be a dusty, sandy grey. They’re part of a continuum … tantalizing glimpses of another time seen through the lens of today.