Prelude to World War III: The Rise of the Islamic Republic and the Rebirth of America

by James Rosone

  “The IR laser missile defense system is going to be challenging to get through, but not impossible. The key to any laser defense system is power; I recommend that we conduct a series of strategic attacks against their critical infrastructure. It’s still experimental, but we can use our new hypersonic ramjet cruise missile, the X59. It travels at Mach 10, making it nearly impossible to acquire and target by laser. In addition, a laser needs to hit the missile for at least 3 seconds for it to cause enough heat to cause an explosion. The X59 travels too fast for that. It can carry 5,000 lbs. of high explosive warhead, or it can transport a variable nuclear warhead. We only have fifteen of them, but could begin full production immediately,” said General Adrian Rice, the Air Force Chief of Staff.

  “Mr. President, the public is going to demand we hit the IR with nukes. They will want their pound of flesh after the last three months of terrorist attacks. We need the IR to understand that these types of attacks are not going to be tolerated and we will respond with overwhelming force.”

  “I understand the frustration, Monty. I want to make sure we hit them hard, but I also want to make sure this does not spiral out of control either. With the 5th Fleet gone, what does our anti-ballistic missile defense capability look like in the Middle East now?”

  “Sir, the 6th Fleet packs more than enough punch to deal with any ballistic missile attacks by the IR on either Israel or US Forces. Unless the IR starts to use more nuclear-tipped artillery rounds, we can take them down,” said Admiral Juliano.

  “All right gentlemen, let’s hit the IR with a taste of their own medicine. Take out their power grid; hit them with the 30 kiloton warheads. Also, ensure that at least two of the missiles destroy their ability to export oil by destroying their two largest terminals. I also want the Straits of Hormuz heavily mined and some subs sitting out there to pick off any shipping, either entering or leaving. The minute their power is down and their laser defense system goes off line, I want those sites destroyed,” the President said and continued issuing orders.

  “We need to disable their laser defense system quickly, and then we will systematically destroy their ability to continue this war.”

  “Yes, Mr. President,” rang the chorus of voices.

  With the plans in place to strike back at the IR, the President left with Monty to prepare his address to the American people.

  It was dinner time in America and as families sat down to eat while glued to the news of the war, the President went on national TV and radio to explain the situation in the Middle East and the nuclear strike that the IR conducted against the US 5th Fleet. The President assured the American people that the US was responding in kind and soon the IR would feel the wrath of American nuclear weapons as well.

  The following morning, the President made a second national address laying out the facts of the terrorist attacks against the US and the links between those attacks and the IR. The sheer number of casualties coming in from the Middle East was staggering as well. The President asked the Congress to issue a formal declaration of war against the Islamic Republic and declared a State of Emergency and martial law.

  All Governors were asked to activate any of their National Guard units that had not been activated yet and to begin to use those forces to protect the critical infrastructure buildings and nodes in their states. Within an hour of war being formally declared, the President asked for all able-bodied men and women to join the Armed Forces to assist in the protection of their families, homeland and way of life.

  The Islamic Republic responded to the President’s declaration of war and the nuclear attack on their own country by issuing one of their own. They vowed they would not stop until Israel was destroyed and the Americans were removed from the Middle East. Within hours, five additional terrorist attacks were carried out against civilian targets in the US, attacking several power plants and transmission nodes.

  As police and first responders began to arrive, they were attacked by several terrorists who had chosen to stay behind and kill as many police as they could before detonating the remaining IEDs and vehicle borne IEDs they had lined along the roads. These attacks only furthered the hatred brewing between the Muslims and non-Muslims living in America, particularly when a small country church was attacked and all 103 parishioners were crucified on crosses on the county road leading to the church. There were 19 children among those crucified. Muslims all across America were starting to be attacked in retaliation. The police did their best to protect both groups of people, but it was becoming harder and harder to keep the two sides apart.

  *******

  29 November 2040

  Israel

  Third Corps Headquarters

  The US struck the Islamic Republic’s power generation plant at Ras Tanura on the Arabian Gulf, the Abqaiq plant in the same area, and also the Ar Riyad plant, destroying 13,391 Megawatts of power production and effectively disrupting 60% of the power generation capability in the heart of the IR. The city of Buqayq was completely destroyed in the nuclear attack, along with the city of Ras Tanura, Al Khobar and its oil terminals and port.

  Several power generation plants in Iran, Iraq and Egypt were also destroyed, along with the cities they were near. The IR government denounced these attacks, citing the hundreds of thousands of civilians killed, and demanded the US be sanctioned by the United Nations. The Russian government immediately denounced this blatant attack against civilian targets by the US, as did China.

  The European Union asked that all parties refrain from further use of nuclear weapons and asked for a pledge to keep the war conventional. The President of the United States announced that any further IR use of nuclear weapons against US Forces or Israel would result in a substantial nuclear response by the US.

  General Gardner had been awake for nearly 30 hours as reports from the frontlines continued to pour in. The 1st Armored Division had gone from being on the defensive to taking the fight to the enemy. They had broken out of the Golan Heights and were pushing the IR forces back to Damascus. Because of the success of 1st Armored Division, the IDF had been able to rout out the IR forces in Lebanon and began to shift forces from that front towards Jerusalem.

  *******

  Undisclosed Site in Israel

  Allied Underground Command Bunker

  One of the Colonels running the J3 or Joint Operations group for Third Corps gave an update on the situation on the ground. “The 1st ID has been in constant contact with IR armor and IFVs for nearly 24 hours; they had to fall back past Jericho and found themselves less than four miles from Jerusalem. The IDF moved two additional battalions of light infantry just before dawn to reinforce American/Israeli forces and took up positions throughout the hills approaching Jerusalem.”

  “Tell General Twitty I need him to commit the rest of his division to the defense of Jerusalem. Unless the Israelis tell us otherwise, we are going to turn Jerusalem into a meat grinder,” said LTG Gardner. He was reading from one tablet and then another, each with up-to-date aerial reconnaissance and reports from the front.

  “General Twitty is already on it. He moved his HQ to the west side of Jerusalem so he could be closer to the battle. I also have that report you asked for and photos of that platoon from 1st ID that had been captured yesterday. It would appear the rumors are true. The IR crucified all of the prisoners to motivate their own forces, showing that even the Americans can be beat,” said Brigadier General Peter Williams with a look of anger and disgust on his face.

  “This is getting out of control. They are not only killing those who are wounded or captured-- they are now crucifying them? How many prisoners of theirs do we have?”

  “A few thousand. Most of them are from 1st Armors AO,” said General Williams.

  “Hmm…I’m not going to kill their prisoners, at least not yet, but since they are making this a religious war, then let’s hit them where it hurts. Tell General Twitty he is to destroy the Al Aqsa Mosque near the Temple Mount; I want it flattened as soon as possible.”
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  “I am not sure the Israelis will let us blow it up sir. They currently protect it right now,” said Williams.

  “I will take full responsibility for this, and if the President or the SecDef wants to relieve me of command, then so be it. I will not let our soldiers be crucified by these jihadists and not retaliate.”

  “I believe we should coordinate this with the IDF; perhaps we can arrange to have a film crew on scene to video its destruction.”

  “Make it happen.”

  *******

  The Israeli cities were being devastated from the almost constant missile and artillery barrages. The IDS was extremely effective, but even it could be overwhelmed given sufficient firepower. Multiple power plants had been taken offline from cyber-attacks or from damage sustained from the barrages, and this was starting to have an impact on the IDF’s ability to sustain its rocket and missile defense systems. The IDS was running out of missiles; the railgun and laser systems were running out of power. Their own self-sustaining power generation could provide enough power for air defense but with a continuous barrage all across the country for more than 18 hours, they needed additional power to sustain their defensive effort.

  Word spread quickly through the American and Israeli ranks about the crucifixions, which only spurned them to fight harder. As the fighting continued, the 1st ID stopped taking prisoners and killed any wounded or surrendering IR soldiers they saw. Without informing the Israeli Prime Minister or his own higher command, the IDF Major, who was in charge of the soldiers guarding the Al Aqsa Mosque, let soldiers from the 3rd ID place explosives throughout the Mosque and stood by as they detonated them.

  Within seconds, the entire building collapsed and was nothing more than a smoking ruin. The people that had not fled Jerusalem could not believe the Mosque had just been destroyed. No one knew if it was an errant missile that destroyed it or if it was intentional. It did not take long for pictures and video of its destruction to spread across social media.

  A BBC news crew who had been filming the fighting from a vantage point near the Mosque was reporting on the battle that was taking place a few miles from Jerusalem when they saw a number of soldiers entering the Mosque, then leaving just as quickly; a couple of minutes later the Mosque was completely destroyed. Every Muslim around the world saw the destruction of this Holy site and many began to take to the streets shouting, “Death to Israel and America!”

  The Israeli Prime Minister was quick to denounce the destruction, saying the IDF had no part in its demolition and quickly blamed the Americans. General Gardner provided a short statement to the media saying that he had authorized the destruction of the Al Aqsa Mosque of his own volition in retaliation for IR units crucifying captured American soldiers, of which there was plenty of video evidence. Had the situation on the ground not been so precarious, the Israeli Prime Minister would have insisted on General Gardner being replaced. As it was, Jerusalem might have fallen within the next day if the 3rd ID were not able to stop the IR.

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  Near Anman, Jordan

  Islamic Republic Military Headquarters

  General Abdullah Muhammed could not believe the success his army was having against the Americans and Israelis. Admiral Jaffa Mustafa had come through and destroyed the entire 5th Fleet! Two aircraft carriers and all of their support ships--if only he had been able to destroy the carriers in the Mediterranean, his victory could almost be assured. Those two carriers had destroyed his Sinai force, which would have placed additional pressure on the IDF.

  The campaign in the Jordan Valley was going swimmingly; the American 1st ID had put up a fight, but ultimately they had to fall back. Even with the American 3rd infantry division coming to their rescue, it was only a matter of time before Jerusalem would fall. He had two hundred thousand light infantry moving into the valley to begin the final assault to take Jerusalem.

  “General Muhammed, General Hamza wants to know what we are doing to stop the Americans from advancing and capturing Damascus. They are at the outskirts of the city already,” said General Ishmael Omar, General Muhammed’s Chief of Staff.

  “Tell General Hamza I have ordered three divisions of armor to reinforce Damascus. I am also diverting additional attack aircraft and helicopters as well. That should satisfy him…doesn’t he realize the goal is to cut Israel in half? Damascus is not important. Capturing Jerusalem is.”

  “I will inform him right away sir. Before I leave, we received word that our forces have captured Eilat and the American Israeli naval base there.”

  “The IDF retreated to the Ovda IAF airbase. General Ibrahim also reported that he had finally secured Ir Ovot all the way to Dinoma on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee. He has asked for permission to use his reserves as he makes a push to capture Be’er Sheva.”

  “Tell him he has permission to use his reserves and prepare to fight the American Marines. Once he secures his objectives, he needs to be ready to move towards the Sinai and push those Americans into the Sea.”

  IR forces were starting to break through the Jordan Valley defenses; they had poured over 600,000 soldiers into the valley to fight 12,500 American soldiers and roughly 60,000 Israelis. After 24 hours of hard fighting, they were now less than four miles from capturing Jerusalem. Then the news that the Americans had destroyed the Al Aqsa Mosque sent every soldier into a religious frenzy against the Americans. Hundreds of thousands of Muslims began to protest in virtually every major city in the world. Close to two million people from Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia were moving towards Mecca to pray and to volunteer to fight against the Americans and destroy the spawns of Satan, the Jews.

  Caliph Mohammed played this up in numerous broadcasts he televised from a hidden underground bunker. The IR Public Relations (PR) Ministry was broadcasting news reels of the destruction of the US 5th Fleet and the nuclear detonations destroying the Americans. Videos of the massive missile and artillery barrages pouring into Israel, videos from the frontlines showing destroyed Israeli and American armored vehicles and the startling images from the West, the images of Israeli and American soldiers hanging from crosses with the city of Jerusalem in the distance, all of these played on near-constant loops on any television station that the IR could control.

  Shortly after those videos were shown, the Pope came out with a statement. He was less ornately dressed than on some other occasions, but the gravity of the situation called for quick action and less ceremony. “This treatment of Christians and Jews is intolerable. If the IR succeeds in capturing Jerusalem, they could destroy everything sacred to the Christian and Jewish religions. I declare that this wanton destruction and desecration of life by the IR is a crime, not just against humanity, but against the Christian and Jewish religions. I call on my brothers and sisters in faith to stand together against these horrible atrocities. We must take up the call to action.”

  Within days, tens of thousands of Catholics and Protestants from across Europe were either joining the military or looking for ways to join the Israeli Defense Force Militia units that were originally established by the Vatican but quickly began to spring up in Italy, Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. This movement quickly spread to South America, where the word of the Pope carried a lot of weight.

  The Vatican had all but called this a Holy War against Islam. Tens of thousands of Muslims in Italy began to converge on the Vatican in protest; very quickly, the Muslim communities across Europe began to riot and take to the streets, attacking Christians and Jews in response to the Pope’s message.

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  29 November 2040

  Afternoon of Day One

  United States, Undisclosed Location

  Mt. Weather Station – Presidential Command and Control Bunker

  Within hours of the Pope’s message, tens of thousands of Muslims converged on Washington, DC in protest. Several hundred young men used the protest as a cover to get close to the Capital building before launching their attack. They broke from the protest
march and ran for the various Capital building exits, shooting police and security guards as they encountered them. Several dozen attackers were engaging the Capital Police near the main entrance while a group of seven individuals managed to break into one of the emergency exits. Within seconds, they were running through the hallways of the Capital, throwing grenades into offices and shooting everyone they encountered. Two other groups of attackers were able to enter other emergency exits and began their assault.

  As additional police officers and SWAT members engaged the attackers, they were able to block them from the House Chamber, where a number of the senior Congressional leadership had evacuated to. A similar attack was also underway at the Senate building and two other government agencies within DC. The protest rally quickly spiraled out of control as police began to shoot the protesters and several gunmen hidden amongst the crowd continued to shoot at the police.

  Thirty minutes after the start of the attacks against the Capital building and the Senate, the President activated the Continuity of Government (COG) plan, which began the dispersal of all elected officials to various command bunkers as the US Government went underground. The President also moved the American military to DEFCON One, bringing all US Forces to the highest level of readiness. This placed all US overseas military bases on a war footing in anticipation of combat operations.

  Rioting and protests were starting to spring up all across the US as the various Muslim communities reacted to the destruction of the Al Aqsa Mosque and the Pope’s message. Other Muslim groups began denouncing the barbaric acts the IR was perpetrating on the US and Israeli soldiers with the crucifixions, pleading for all sides to remain calm.