The Reading / Listening - The Middle East - Level 4

The Middle East is in turmoil after the attacks by Israel and the USA on Iran. Several Iranian cities were heavily bombed as the US attempted to destroy Iran's nuclear factories. The strikes also killed Iran's leader Ayatollah Khamenei. President Trump wrote: "We're going to…raze their missile industry to the ground." Trump called for Iranians to rise up. He wrote: "This is the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their country."

Iran immediately retaliated. It fired missiles at its neighbours. Iran's Revolutionary Guards claimed they had struck US military targets. They warned: "This operation will continue relentlessly until the enemy is decisively defeated." There are fears an escalation will create inflation and financial turmoil worldwide. Much of the world's oil travels through the Strait of Hormuz waterway, which Iran could close. Experts also warn of a refugee crisis.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    The Middle East - Level 5 or  The Middle East - Level 6

Sources
  • https://theconversation.com/us-israeli-attack-on-iran-risks-plunging-the-world-into-turmoil-276818
  • https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/2/28/multiple-gulf-arab-states-that-host-us-assets-targeted-in-iran-retaliation
  • https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/iran-us-israel-strikes-nuclear-weapons-trump-b2929402.html


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. The Middle East is in turmoil
  2. Iranian cities were heavily
  3. attempted to destroy Iran's
  4. The strikes also
  5. raze their missile industry
  6. Trump called for Iranians
  7. This is the single greatest
  8. take back
  1. nuclear factories
  2. chance
  3. to the ground
  4. after the attacks
  5. their country
  6. bombed
  7. to rise up
  8. killed Iran's leader

Paragraph 2

  1. Iran immediately
  2. It fired missiles
  3. they had struck US
  4. This operation will continue
  5. until the enemy is decisively
  6. an escalation will create
  7. Much of the world's oil
  8. Experts also warn of a
  1. at its neighbours
  2. refugee crisis
  3. relentlessly
  4. inflation
  5. retaliated
  6. travels through the Strait
  7. military targets
  8. defeated

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

The Middle East is in turmoil (1) ________________________________________________ by Israel and the USA on Iran. Several Iranian cities (2) ________________________________________________ as the US attempted to destroy Iran's nuclear factories. The (3) ________________________________________________ Iran's leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. President Trump wrote: "We're going to... (4) ________________________________________________ industry to the ground." Trump called for Iranians (5) ________________________________________________. He wrote: "This is the (6) ________________________________________________ for the Iranian people to take back their country."

Iran immediately retaliated. It (7) ________________________________________________ its neighbours. Iran's Revolutionary Guards claimed they had struck (8) ________________________________________________. They warned: "This operation will continue relentlessly until the enemy (9) ________________________________________________." There are fears an escalation will create (10) ________________________________________________ turmoil worldwide. Much of the world's (11) ________________________________________________ the Strait of Hormuz waterway, which Iran could close. Experts also warn of (12) ________________________________________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

TheMiddleEastisinturmoilaftertheattacksbyIsraelandtheUSAonIran
.SeveralIraniancitieswereheavilybombedastheUSattemptedtodestr
oyIran'snuclearfactories.ThestrikesalsokilledIran'sleaderAyatollahA
liKhamenei.PresidentTrumpwrote:"We'regoingto...razetheirmissilei
ndustrytotheground."TrumpcalledforIranianstoriseup.Hewrote:"Th
isisthesinglegreatestchancefortheIranianpeopletotakebacktheircou
ntry."Iranimmediatelyretaliated.Itfiredmissilesatitsneighbours.Ira
n'sRevolutionaryGuardsclaimedtheyhadstruckUSmilitarytargets.Th
eywarned:"Thisoperationwillcontinuerelentlesslyuntiltheenemyisd
ecisivelydefeated."Therearefearsanescalationwillcreateinflationand
financialturmoilworldwide.Muchoftheworld'soiltravelsthroughtheSt
raitofHormuzwaterway,whichIrancouldclose.Expertsalsowarnofare
fugeecrisis.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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