A great number of representatives in Parliament belong to one of the parties or electoral blocs that were created by the regime’s security and intelligence agencies about three years ago in preparation for parliamentary elections. There were scuffles in the chamber as dissenting representatives yelled at their fellow legislators, saying that even to debate the issue was treasonous. Again and again, opponents of ceding the islands asked to speak and were denied. They demanded a roll-call vote and were denied. On the fourth day, amid chaos, the law transferring the islands to Saudi Arabia was passed in an unrecorded vote.

Why is the president so keen to give away such strategic and valuable pieces of Egyptian territory — so keen that his government was willing to show contempt for the institutions of the judiciary, the Constitution and Parliament? Was this simply a battle of wills that Mr. Sisi had to win to show that there was nothing to stop him from doing whatever he wanted? Or was it because the government was trapped in a deal that it could neither renege on, nor account for frankly to the people?

Handing the islands to Saudi Arabia makes the kingdom a party to the Camp David accords and so provides justification for its developing rapprochement with Israel. Until now, Saudi relations with Israel have largely been secret because they would be unpopular domestically. Now, with the possibility of a realignment in the region, including an alliance against Iran that would include Israel, Saudi leaders want to go public about the new ties but dress them up as a necessity, mandated by the treaty.

The danger for Egypt is that while the Camp David accords say that the Straits of Tiran must remain open to all shipping, this holds only in times of peace and for “well-intentioned” shipping. If the straits remained under Egyptian control, then Egypt could close them in time of war or if it suspected that any particular shipping had hostile intent. If the islands were Saudi, though, the straits between the islands and Egypt would become international waters, instead of Egyptian territorial waters. That would leave Egypt’s Sinai coast completely vulnerable to attack.

In addition, the dispute over the islands takes place against a dark backdrop in Egypt. Most citizens have felt a threat hanging over their lives and livelihoods for decades, but we also now feel a kind of existential dread. The bedrock of our identity is that Egypt has existed in recognizable form for thousands of years. This bedrock is being eroded as the core characteristics of our country change.