A stunned silence lasted for several minutes. It wasn’t every day that this group heard a realistic evaluation of their situation. It was very pessimistic and sounded true.
“How do you mean ‘several hundred thousand Arabs’?” asked the leader of the Islamic Jihad finally. “Our own population surveys show that there are more than a million Palestinians in the Gaza strip and at least as many in the West Bank!”
This time it was the Chairman’s turn to respond: “My friend, you believe our propaganda? The West Bank holds at least thirty percent less Palestinians than we claim. The actual birth rates were much lower and emigration much higher than reported. Gaza is not relevant since it did not get transported with us to this time. An Israel with twelve million Jews has no demographic problem with us. Actually they never did but we convinced some of them otherwise – enough for our purposes.
“But back to our main issue. I recommend that you tell everyone in your organizations that from now on any blood they spill will come back to haunt them, immediately and directly. The blood of their brothers will be on their hands.”
“What if the Jews decide to exterminate us?” asked an older man, the leader of a small Marxist faction.
“There is nothing we would be able to do except die with dignity.” The Chairman surveyed the crowd. “That is why the Grand Mufti’s advice is so wise – keep quiet and don’t get into fights you can’t win. I agree with his estimate that the only way to defeat Israel is with nuclear weapons. To use them with minimal harm to our people we will have to get out of this area as soon as the border is opened. I only hope that we can convince our brothers living in Israel to follow our example.”
The meeting dispersed after that statement. It seemed that the sacrifice of a small Palestinian state for the dream of a large one without Jews was for naught. The years of struggle and bloodshed were wasted, as were so many Arab lives. It was depressing. Some of the attendees were considering the option to end it all in one glorious act of violence worthy of a real Jihad. Never before had these leaders considered martyring themselves for the cause. It was safe to assume they would find a way to stay alive, as they always did. The Mufti was their only hope. Pray to Allah that his plans will succeed.
***
Dr. Ahmad Mazen didn’t like the current situation one bit but thought that maybe he could change it. It was all a question of politics. The Grand Mufti may have been correct about the Germans and their atom bomb, but in the meantime something had to be done about this terrible change in Israeli policy. They should not be allowed to hold his brothers hostage to future terror acts. The Palestinians should not be held back in their efforts to liberate their land and push the Jews into the sea. He had an idea. It was simple and only required a couple of telephone calls. His first was to his long-term collaborator and agent in the Peace Now movement.
“Hello Shlomo. This is your old friend. How are you?”
“Oh, it’s you. Haven’t heard from you in a long time. I’m fine. How are you and how can I help you?”
“Shlomo, in a moment I will fax you a letter I received from the Minister of Internal Security. Please read it carefully. You will find that it breaks a number of your laws and constitutes inhumane behavior towards our people. I know that your organization has good lawyers and recommend that you start a two-pronged offensive. A request to the Supreme Court for an injunction to suspend the letter, or whatever other legal action they can come up with, and, in parallel, demonstrations and grassroots resistance to this policy. We will also have the Arab members of the Knesset as well as the left wing peace parties raise hell in the legislature. It’s immoral and illegal to hold prisoners’ lives hostage.”
“Consider it done.”
Mazen thought some more. He was a historian with a specialty in the Holocaust. Several of his papers explaining how it never happened had been very well accepted in the Arab world. He knew this period well and estimated that none of the great powers, including the U.S. and Russia, would be supportive of the Jews, and certainly would not support the draconian measures against his brothers. The problem was, he didn’t have access to the great powers. He did have access to their ambassadors though. Mazen thought that if the American and Russian ambassadors publicly oppose the new “Hostage Law” it would help his friends in Peace Now. It might also help them gain some votes in the Knesset. In any case, no harm would be done. He called the American embassy, and after that he called the Russians.
***
The four citizens of the Caliph disappeared in the vicinity of Kaunas, so testified the chief of the local Gestapo. He was extremely nervous and looked afraid. Inspector Saul Unger looked at his voice stress indicator and made a decision. “Everybody out. You,” he pointed at the Gestapo man, “stay here.”
The Germans tried to protest, but Eichmann ordered them to obey. Those who were still not convinced of the Caliph’s power, the Major that governed Kaunas being one of those, were swayed by two explosions. The first, the smaller of the two, destroyed an SS barracks two streets away from the building they were in. The second destroyed an empty bunker at the Ninth Fort. The force of this explosion shook the town. The timing was perfect, as the plane that released the two laser-guided bombs received its cue from one of the Special Forces.
“You better listen carefully to what I have to say,” Saul declared. “This is the last warning you will get from the Caliph. One more case of hesitation in obeying my orders and we will execute everybody here.”
There were several German officials in the room, including Eichmann. Three members of the Israeli Special Forces, dressed as Caliphate soldiers, were also present. All the Germans got up and left. Outside another trio of Israelis stood guard. One of them escorted the Germans outside the building. The Israeli group took over, unceremoniously expelling the Gestapo, local Lithuanian police and the German Governor’s staff. The building that used to be the German regional headquarters, the headquarters of the local Gestapo and of the Lithuanian police was now controlled by Israelis.
“Relax,” Saul told the Nazi in good but heavily accented German. “I know it’s not easy to be calm in the presence of the Great Caliph’s inquisitors, but you will be okay if you speak the truth. Let’s begin.” He put a standard polygraph harness on the German. A thin cable connected it to a small hand held computer. The whole thing was plugged into a power outlet.
“Now, what is your name?”
“Hans Klemper.”
“When were you born?”
“February 2, 1904.”
“What color is your hair?”
“Brown.”
“Did you have anything to do with the disappearance of our citizens? Yes or no only, please.”
“No.”
“Do you know anyone who may have been connected to their disappearance?”
The German hesitated: “No.”
“Another lie and you will lose your tongue.” Saul smiled a cold smile. “Let’s try again. Do you know anyone who may have been connected to the disappearance?”
This time the German did not hesitate: “Yes.”
“Who is this person?” Saul asked.
“Walter Huber.”
Saul looked at the display. He had all the names of German and Lithuanian officials in the area. The man named was an SS major.
“Why do you suspect the major?”
“He is responsible for intelligence in the area and has all kinds of connections. He may have decided to gather some information on his own. I’m guessing, but this is the best I can do.”
“Who else do you suspect?”
“Captain Andreas Niemetzkas of the Lithuanian police.”
“Why him?”
“He has connections with the Lithuanian partisans. I was watching him for a while but did not arrest him in the hope of gathering more information about the bandits.”
The next to be interrogated was SS Major Walter Huber. After the normal introductory baseline questions Saul wanted to know whether he w
as involved with the disappearance. The Major, a tough customer, tried to evade a direct answer: “I told a number of people that it would be a good idea to get some intelligence from these Jews.”
“Give me a list of names, please.”
“Well, let’s see. I spoke to Hans, Andreas, Gerhard and maybe some I don’t remember.”
“Who is Gerhardt?” Saul asked.
“Lieutenant Gerhardt Hartle is my adjutant. He disappeared yesterday. Our troops are looking for him – I suspect that this is the work of bandits. Gerhardt is inexperienced and, I am afraid, given to long walks. He may have been taken while walking in the forest – I think I remember him saying something about mushrooms.”
“Walter, my friend,” Saul smiled his unfriendly smile, “do you know what the penalty is for lying to me?”
“No.”
“I will forgive you one attempt. The second time you lose your tongue. My associate,” Saul pointed at one of the three soldiers standing guard, “has the appropriate tools and will relieve you of the instrument of your lies right here.”
The soldier smiled as if pleased to have an opportunity to use the wicked looking combination pliers/cutter he produced from one of his pockets.
The major bridled: “You can do no such thing to an SS officer. You will die if you try.”
Saul looked surprised: “Are you threatening me?”
“Take it as you will, but I am not answering any more questions.” The Nazi seemed unconcerned.
Saul nodded to his soldier, who moved quickly. Before the SS man realized what happened his right hand was held firmly. When the German tried to free himself he was rewarded with a pair of swift punches. Now he was bent over from a punch to his solar plexus and bleeding from a broken nose.
“If you resist, Ahmed here will have lots of fun with you. You will be much better off just letting him do what he needs to do,” Saul said calmly.
Before the German could respond Saul nodded and the soldier cut off the index finger on his right hand.
It took a while before Major Huber stopped shrieking and recovered enough to continue answering questions. Saul decided to wait until his subject regained his breath, stopped retching and was able to hold the gauze pad the soldier gave him to stem the bleeding.
“Where is your adjutant Gerhardt?”
“He was on the same train as the people who disappeared. Nobody has heard from him since then.”
The Lithuanian Police chief was next. Having heard the German’s distress through the open window and having seen his sorry state, Andreas did not try to conceal anything but knew very little.
***
While Saul was interrogating the obvious suspects and later talking to inhabitants of the ghetto, a second group, consisting of a forensic expert and five Special Forces soldiers went to the site where, according to a Lithuanian who had been on the train, the transport had been stopped and the abduction had taken place.
A week had passed so they didn’t expect to find much, if any, physical evidence. The forensics expert looked carefully on both sides of the track. There were clumps of broken branches where the tracks entered a small clearing in the dense forest.
“Are the Lithuanian partisans active in this area?” the Special Forces lieutenant asked.
“No, not really. As far as I know this was the first time they stopped a train. They didn’t attack it or derail it either. Just placed a couple of big trees across the tracks. The passengers cleared it in five minutes after they were gone.”
“How many people did they take?”
“Well,” the Lithuanian looked at his fingers and murmured to himself, “the three Jews with special permits, an SS officer, two Lithuanian civilians and two young women. That’s all, I think.”
“How do you know the Jews had special permits?”
“The bandits were looking for them. They asked everybody for their papers, and nabbed the three as soon as they showed those fancy cards.”
“You said three Jews? Are you sure there weren’t four?”
“Oh, I’m sure. I sat two rows behind them in the car. Actually, since they were put on the train by a German officer nobody wanted to take the fourth seat next to them. It was empty.”
“Did the German officer put up a fight?”
“No! Are you crazy? It was a big band of bandits. Maybe a hundred. The German had no chance. But, since you mention him, I do remember a funny thing: the bandits did not take the SS man’s pistol. I thought it was strange - why let him keep his gun?”
By this time the forensic guy was done so the lieutenant thanked the Lithuanian for his help and offered to escort him to his village.
“Thank you very much, but there’s really no need. The forest is safe. I doubt that there is a human being within fifteen miles outside of my village.”
***
The teams met in the evening at the Gestapo building.
Their commander, a Special Forces captain, informed the group that while they were doing their jobs his team had checked the building for bugs, prepared it for defense and also set up a command center.
“Now let’s hear from Saul,” the captain said.
“I have some conflicting information and some clues.” Saul paused to look at his notes. “From the testimony of the Germans I can only draw some preliminary conclusions. It seems that a SS lieutenant Gerhardt Hartle is missing from the same train as our guys. He is probably involved in this but I still have to determine how. His boss, SS Major Walter Hubel, is smart and tough. He managed to partly fool the lie detector. If a person convinces themselves that a fantasy is true, the machine will say it is true. It is also possible that he was smart enough to formulate his orders to this Gerhardt as general wishes and is now able to tell us, sort of truthfully, that he never ordered the abduction. He almost outsmarted himself by refusing to answer questions.
“By the way, Sergeant Zohar,” Saul was very serious now, “I want to file a formal protest with your commander. There was no need to be so brutal with Hubel. I asked you to break his index finger. You should not have beaten him the way you did and certainly shouldn’t have cut off the finger. It is one thing to use violence when necessary, quite another to take pleasure in torturing your subject. Your behavior was not fit for a member of the Israeli Defense Forces.”
“Sir,” the sergeant was surprised. “You know who this Nazi is. I read only a couple of pages from his file. He was trained in Dachau and a couple of other camps in interrogation techniques. His file says he was commended on his achievements. Who knows how many innocent people he’s tortured to death already? And here in Kaunas, if it wasn’t for our time accident, he would have become notorious for torturing prisoners at the Ninth Fort. They killed tens of thousands there, and he was personally responsible for a significant number of those deaths. I think that I was very mild, all things considered.”
Saul was about to respond, but the captain was faster. “Sergeant, I will let this go. This time. You’ve had your warning and any repetition of this kind of behavior will have consequences.” The captain looked at each member of his team. “We don’t want to become like these beasts. All of you have to understand that we are in a precarious situation and orders will be obeyed exactly as given. If you have doubts, ask for confirmation. The only time you are allowed to improvise is if you are cut off and all by yourself, which I sincerely hope will not happen.
“OK. Lieutenant, what do you have to report?”
The lieutenant told them the Lithuanian witness’s story: “The thing that worries me is that he is sure there were only three of our people on the train. Somebody is missing and we don’t know who or how.”
“It was difficult to find anything after a week,” the forensic investigator said. Forests have the ability to repair themselves fairly quickly. But I found a couple of clues.” He explained his findings for a couple of minutes. “Judging by the broken branches, I can say with reasonable certainty that the partisans waited for the train at the edge of th
e clearing. The group couldn’t have been larger than 10, maybe 20 people. Our guys were definitely taken off the train at that spot – I found a bunch of polyester and rayon fibers. I don’t know why one of them was allowed to leave wearing synthetics, but in this case it was useful.
“There is a faint trail of broken twigs and a couple of cigarette butts that leads to the northwest from the abduction spot,” he pointed the direction out on a map, “but I have no idea how far they went or if they kept the same heading. It’s not likely they did. This forest is too dense for a straight line path and they wouldn’t be that stupid anyway.”
Saul was thinking aloud: “If your Lithuanian is not lying, there is only that one small village and the town of Kasiadorys. I assume that he exaggerated the distance to the next town, just as he saw maybe a hundred attackers where there were at most twenty. It makes no difference as far as locating our people. Assuming they are hidden in the forest, there is only one way we can locate them.”
***
Just after ten the next morning, Saul and the forensic expert were huddled in front of a monitor. They had requested that one of the surveillance satellites be diverted to scan the forest, giving them images in both infrared and visible light. Now they were trying to determine if something unusual was evident. It took another two hours before they found something.
“There are two suspicious spots,” Saul reported to the captain. “One is north by northwest of the point where the abduction took place, the other directly north. Both areas had discoloration and signs of smoke on the daylight images and showed up as bright spots in night time infrared.” He paused, as if hesitating, then continued: “Yesterday I spoke to a number of people in the ghetto. It seems that a number of Jews left the ghetto at the beginning of July. They are rumored to be in the forest, but nobody knows where. We may have just found them. But we don’t know which encampment is friendly. I am afraid that we will have to investigate both.
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