Prisoners
A Muslim and a Jew Across the Middle East Divide
Chapter One
THE THIEF OF MERCY
On the morning of the fine spring day, full of sunshine, that ended with my
arrest in Gaza, I woke early from an uneven sleep, dressed, and pushed back to
its proper place the desk meant to barricade the door of my hotel room. I
unknotted the bedsheets I had tied together into an emergency escape ladder.
Then I hid the knife I kept under my pillow, cleaned the dust from my shoes, and
carefully unbolted the door. I searched the dark hall. There were no signs of
imminent peril. Most people wouldn't be so cautious, but I had my reasons, and
not all of them were rooted in self-flattering paranoia.
I was staying at the al-Deira hotel, a fine hotel, one of Gaza's main charms. On
hot nights, which are most nights, it brimmed over with members of haute
Palestine, that small clique of Gazans who earned more than negligible incomes.
The men smoked apple-flavored tobacco from water pipes; the women, their heads
covered, drank strong coffee and kept quiet.
By day the hotel was mostly empty. The ho ... read full excerpt from: Prisoners ebook
