Trump and Israeli settlers share one thing in common

Washington DC may be 15 hours flying time from Ramallah in the West Bank but the two places are currently engaged in the same kind of people-movement strategy. Donald Trump has sudenly become worried about crime in Washington DC, even though the violent crime rates are significantly down, and he has ordered all homeless people living on the streets in the capital to move out and find somewhere else to live. Likewise, Israeli settlers, not the most gentle of souls, are stepping up their efforts to expand their territorial presence in the West Bank which entails driving Palestinian people from their homes. It's an ugly business and coincides with the Israeli government's intention to force all 800,000 Palestinians out of Gaza City while the military seeks out the last live and dead hostages, and root out the remaining Hamas gunmen - still believed to be in their thousands. In the Bosnia war in the 1990s, it used to be called ethnic cleansing. But in Israel, it's described as the right strategy to eliminate Hamas and keep the Israeli borders safe. In Washington, the plan to force out all homeless people who live in tents dotted around the capital, is all about prettyfying and safeguarding the US capital. The last time I went to Washington it all looked pretty clean and safe. The thousands of tents on every blade of grass in the capital had gone. But Trump is of the view that the mayor of Washington has failed to keep the capital city safe and he wants to send National Guard soldiers and FBI agents to patrol the streets. That's on top of the myriad of police forces which already patrol the city, and the Secret Service which mounts 24-hour armed protection around and in the vicinity of the White House. Getting rid of undesirable people is now the Big Thing. Personally, I feel sorry for the homeless in Washington and the Palestinians being forced out of their homes in the West Bank.