Some of the 19 tourists and guides kidnapped in the Sahara Desert were lined up ready to be shot when their captors told them all to take one car and leave.

They piled in – some clinging to the roof – and drove 200 miles to safety with a GPS (Global Positioning Satellite) to guide them.

Their stories of escape after ten days in captivity, conflict with reports from Egyptian security officials who described a gun battle rescue operation which left half the kidnappers dead.

As the hostages spent a 10th night in captivity, their captors received a phone call.

"They told all the Egyptians to stand in one line and they cocked their weapons, and at that moment we thought we were dead," Hassan Abdel Hakim, 45, one of the Egyptian drivers said.

"Suddenly the man told us to take one car and leave — there were 19 of us packed into one car, some on the roof."

Michele Barrera, a 71-year-old Italian among the group and now back home in near Turin Italy, described how they were suddenly freed.

"It was nothing dramatic, they just shouted 'go, go, go!' and they packed all of us in one car, allowing us to drive away," he said.

Sherif Faroung Mohammed, the 36-year-old driver, said the car started off at 8pm and drove 200 miles through the night before being found by Egyptian security forces.

"They pointed their weapons at us and we were waving our hands trying to tell them that we are the hostages," he said. "Apparently, they received information that the kidnappers were roaming the desert in white vehicles."

The five Italians and five Germans, as well as a Romanian living in Germany, were back in their home countries today, after being kidnapped together with eight Egyptian guides and drivers on Friday September 19.

The five Italian hostages said they had "feared the worst" while being held captive for over ten days.

Giovanna Quaglia, one of the hostages, said "It was hard. Many times we asked ourselves if we would make it, and if we would have enough food and water. We were also very afraid, but our Egyptian guides gave us strength."

She added: "When we saw that the negotiations came to a halt, we feared the worst.” However they had not been mistreated or threatened by the kidnappers, who in the end had given them a jeep and a GPS (global positioning system) and told them they could go.

"We left without a spare tyre and with little water left, and we travelled through the desert for five or six hours until we found a group of people," she said.

The experience would not stop the group – Ms Quaglia, Walter Barotto, Mirella De Giuli, Lorella Paganelli and Michele Barrera, all from Turin – from undertaking further adventures, she said. "It was such an 'exceptional' event that I do not think it will take away our interest in travelling," Ms Quaglia said.

The released hostages said they were unaware of the reported firefight in which some 20 kidnappers – half the total – were killed by Egyptian or Sudanese forces. They said they had "not really known exactly where we were".

Recalling the moment of the kidnap, Mr Barotto said they had seen a jeep in the sand dunes, but had not been initially concerned. "However when it approached us we realised at once they did not have good intentions".

He added: "They did not beat us, but they were severe with us, especially the women. We had to keep our faces covered and look at the ground all the time". They had been given water and food, "but it was rationed".

Mystery remains over the role played by Egyptian, German and Italian special forces, and over whether a ransom was paid. Italian reports said a ransom of six million dollars had exchanged hands. However Franco Frattini, the Italian Foreign Minister, denied this.

Abdel Hakim said the kidnappers were ethnic Africans and they spoke their own language, talking to the Egyptians in broken Arabic. He added they appeared to be Muslims, praying and fasting during the holy month of Ramadan.

The kidnappers were constantly moving the hostages, suggesting they were trying to evade rescuers.

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