‘Thank you for bringing me this far,’ said al-Hussain. ‘Assalamu alaykum.’ Peace be upon you.

The man hugged him. ‘Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatu Allahi wa barakaatuhu,’ he said. Peace be upon you and Allah’s mercy and blessings. He hugged him again, this time kissing him softly on both cheeks. ‘It’s time for you to go.’ He directed him to the second pick-up truck. Al-Hussain walked slowly towards the four men. For a wild moment he wondered if it was some sort of trap and they were about to kill him in the desert, but they greeted him warmly.

Two of them pulled a tarpaulin loose in the back of the truck to reveal two aluminium folding ladders. They seized one each and carried them to the wall. Al-Hussain followed them, shivering in the cold night air.

One of the men placed his ladder against the wall and hurried up it. He used clippers to cut away a section of the razor wire, then waved for al-Hussain to join him. Al-Hussain went up the ladder carefully and sat on the top of the wall. He helped lift the second ladder up and the fighter at the top placed it on the other side. He went down first, then waved for al-Hussain to follow him.

He stepped carefully over the top of the wall making sure not to catch his shirt on the razor wire, then hurried down to join the other man, who was already jogging over to the final barrier, a wire fence again topped by razor wire. It was only eight feet high but they didn’t intend to climb over it: the fighter already had his wire clippers in his hand and bent down to cut a hole.

Al-Hussain stood with his hands on his hips and surveyed the scene ahead. He stiffened as he spotted a dark SUV. He shifted his head from side to side, trying to get a clearer view, and realised two figures were standing at the rear of the vehicle. He bent down. ‘Are they waiting for me?’ he whispered.

‘Of course,’ said the man. He snipped another strand of wire. In less than three minutes he had cut enough to force a hole in the fence big enough for both men to slip through. He held the wire back for al-Hussain. ‘Be careful,’ he said, holding al-Hussain’s arm. ‘There is a ditch.’

They went down slowly into the sandy ditch and crawled up the far side, then hurried to the SUV. The fighter with al-Hussain exchanged a few words with the men, then hugged them both. ‘This is the cargo,’ he said, waving his hand at al-Hussain. ‘It is to be protected at all costs.’

The SUV had four doors and a man opened one of the rear doors for al-Hussain. ‘There’s food in the back, and water,’ said the man, ‘with a blanket and a pillow, if you wish to sleep. We’ll be driving for some time.’