More than 150 extremists released under the Gaza peace agreement stayed in a luxurious five-star hotel in Cairo, Egypt – just a few meters from unsuspecting vacationers, mostly from the West. According to the newspaper’s investigation, they are members of Hamas and other Islamist groups who were in Israel sentenced to life imprisonment for kidnappings, bombings and murders of civilians. Their release was part of US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan.
The British media found that 154 out of a total of 250 released prisoners are housed in a luxury resort The Renaissance Cairo Mirage City Hotel, which is still open to regular guests – families can continue to book their stay without knowing that convicted terrorists are staying in the next room.
Among them is, for example Mahmud Issa (57), founder of the elite Hamas unit known for kidnappings, or Izz a-Din al-Hamamrah (47), a member of ISIS who recruited suicide bombers. Others are the organizer of bomb attacks on buses Samir Abu Nima (64), the kidnapper Ismail Hamdan (57) or murderer Yusuf Dawúd (39).
According to a former Israeli intelligence officer known as Guy C, these men have no movement restrictions in Egypt or other countries. “They can travel freely, even to Europe or Britain, get support from sympathizers and rebuild their networks,” he warned. Experts warn that this is a new security threat – some of the dismissed are already reportedly planning to move to Turkey, Qatar or Tunisia, where they could “blend in”.
It is not yet known who pays for their stay – hotel rooms cost from 200 pounds (about 230 euros) per night. It is estimated that the daily bill for all those accommodated may exceed 30,000 pounds (more than 34,000 €). Some experts assume that the stay is financed by Turkey or Qatar, which have a long-term close relationship with Hamas. The hotel chain refused to comment on the case.
Professor Anthony Glees from the University of Buckingham warned that concentrating these people in one place is extremely dangerous. “These people are our enemies. If we allow them to organize, we are creating the foundation of a new Hezbollah in exile,” he said. According to the Daily Mail both Israeli and Western secret services are preparing to monitor the activities of these men. At the same time, however, there are growing fears that the dispersion of more than a hundred radicals in different countries may lead to the emergence of new terrorist cells in the future.
