Homes and Earthquakes
By Samir Attallah
It was easy to view the statements of the new U.S. President as just another chapter in the liquidation of the Palestinian cause by resettling the people of Gaza in Egypt and Jordan. But Donald Trump had said earlier, as he distributed lands around the world and annexed others, that he would soon reclaim Panama, then Canada, and the rest would follow.
The world, then, is nothing but real estate distributed to people, or people distributed to it. Nations, homelands, and historical identities are nothing but tales, O Um Amr. So too are families, possessions, rights, and hearts.
For the process of human relocation, Trump chose the two countries most flooded with refugees: Egypt and Jordan. The first has 1.8 million registered Syrians, and the second has 1.5 million “official” refugees, meaning the real number is much higher. He also chose, with a stroke of a pen, two countries surrounded by fears and dangers, from Libya to the West Bank. The strange thing is that Trump has asked these two U.S. allies to bear this immense burden, as they hold key positions in the broader Arab strategy.
Are these the first steps of the “New Middle East”? Is this something of the “alternative homeland” we thought was merely an exaggeration raised in times of unrest? The speaker now is the President of the United States, the man who sends thousands of Mexicans away in caravans. This has never happened before; refugees usually moved in the opposite direction. Will the direction change with Trump in a permanent way?
The problem with the man is that he is serious and means what he says, while at first, his demands seemed like a joke due to their oddity. What issue is he opening now, alongside Panama, Canada, and Greenland, which he said its 75,000 residents are dissatisfied with life in their country and want to join America? Imagine that anyone who feels displeased with life in their country could be carried on someone’s shoulder and placed in another country.
Donald Trump is raising an issue as significant as transferring part of Gaza to Sinai and Jordan. An issue of this nature, if raised, requires governments, parliaments, referendums, and international organizations. The U.S. President, however, has a different approach.
President Trump is envied for his desire to achieve things quickly; it is well known that people struggle to move from one home to another.
