Egypt plays reluctant host to freed Palestinians as it walks diplomatic tightrope

Exiled on release from Israeli jails, detainees are being housed in a hotel resort with restricted access to the outside world, writes Giles Whittell in Cairo

- Giles Whittell in Cairo

An hour into the desert east of Cairo, in a five-star resort complex the pharaohs themselves could not have dreamed of, 154 Palestinians started a new life last week.

All have been released from Israeli prisons as part of Donald Trump's peace deal, on condition they go into exile in Egypt. Most were serving long sentences, having been convicted by courts in Israel of offences including murder.

One is Mahmoud al-Ardah. Ardah was first arrested aged 14 for throwing molotov cocktails at Israeli soldiers. Now 50 and a leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, he has spent more than half his life in jail.

But he is celebrated, insofar as Israel and Egypt permit celebrations, for something else: a mass prison break using a tunnel dug with spoons.

The year was 2021. Ardah had been serving a life sentence since 1996 for carrying out attacks against Israelis. He and five others dug their way out of Gilboa prison in northern Israel and made a run for it in the dead of night, having downloaded floorplans for the prison from the internet.

He was rearrested after less than a fortnight. This time his freedom may last a lifetime, but it is a peculiar freedom. “They all hoped to be released to Palestine,” said Kadura Farez, head of the Palestinian Prisoners Club. Instead, they have been billeted at the Almasah hotel, with its six pools and four restaurants. The Egyptian government is picking up the bill; in return, for now, it controls where they stay and their access to the world.