1. the Mediterranean: a sea surrounded by Africa, Europe, and Asia. It has often been called "the incubator of Western civilization". (ancient Egyptian civilization, Hellenic civilization, imperial Rome.)

2. the Nile Delta: an area of lowland shaped like a triangle where the Nile River divides into branches towards the sea.

3. the Strait of Gibraltar: a strait between Europe and Africa at the Atlantic entrance to the Mediterranean.

4. Every year 100 million holiday-makers are drawn to the Mediterranean.

5. The result is that the Mediterranean, which nurtured so many civilizations, is gravely ill- the first of the seas to fall victim to the abilities and attitudes that evolved around it.
 
6. ...anyone who goes for a swim in the Mediterranean has a one in seven chance of getting some sort of disease...

7. It takes 80 years for the waters to be renewed,...., far too slow a process to cope with the remorseless rush of pollution.
    remorseless: adj.
                        
8. the waters of .... have been health hazards for centuries.