The Iran War

by Jack Strain

  A shocked class full of students offered a mix of reactions from “oh my God” to “what the fuck?” A dozen cellphones came out to try and capture the abuse being inflicted on their professor, but before they knew what was happening, the two agents in the back of the room moved quickly down the aisles snatching phones as they moved. When one angry young man rose from his desk, a powerful arm shoved him hard back in his seat, and the agent bellowed, “All of you sit your asses down, put away your phones, or we will take you in, too. Got it?”

  The agent in charge turned to the two securing the room and said, “You two get to his office, secure its contents and get your asses back to the office. We have two more raids scheduled this afternoon. Dave and I will take this guy in. Let’s move.”

  Turning to face the class, the forty-five-year-old agent softened his voice a bit and said, “Sorry you had to see this, but this man had a warrant out for his arrest. If he’s innocent, you’ll see him again. If not, well… Anyway, stay in your seats until your campus security comes down here to take some statements. Let’s get him out of here.”

  Two minutes later, all four agents were gone. Left behind were twenty shocked students who just witnessed what the new war on terror looked like, and it wasn’t pretty.

  NBC News Special Report

  “At the three o’clock hour, I’m Brian Wilson and thank you for tuning in for this NBC Breaking News report. After Saturday’s unprecedented three deadly terror attacks and two other failed attempts, we are witnessing a massive response from local, state, and federal authorities. National Guard units are being mobilized throughout the entire nation and can be seen at airports, subway and train stations, near schools, and malls. The sight of heavily armed soldiers patrolling our streets is for many both reassuring and unnerving at the same time.

  “President Wolfe’s short prepared remarks from the Oval Office last night was a mixed message of heartfelt condolences for the more than three hundred Americans who lost their lives yesterday and a vow that those who seek to do harm to American citizens will be facing swift and decisive justice. What we are finding out today is that with Executive Order 1010, federal authorities have already begun raiding targets across the nation. Foreign nationals on short-term visas from Muslim-predominant nations have been ordered to voluntarily report to Federal Immigration authorities. Those who fail to comply have been threatened with being detained until their status has been determined.

  “Social media sites are abuzz with numerous videos showing heavily armed federal agents bursting into homes arresting alleged terror suspects. Several of these raids have gotten violent. One video feed, in particular, capturing ICE agents storming into a dormitory housing students from Saudi Arabia at the University of North Carolina’s Chapel Hill campus, has produced shock across the web. As three dozen dejected and bewildered Saudi students were being led out in plastic handcuffs, an angry mob of students surrounded them and suddenly surged into the detained students and began viciously beating them. Overwhelmed ICE agents and local police tried to protect the detainees, but the bloodied images of the Saudi students being placed in waiting vans will be long remembered.

  “NBC News is reporting that there have been dozens of examples of vigilante violence against Muslim men and women and their places of worship across the nation. Massive rallies are being organized across the nation. Americans who already have been reeling from images of war abroad, the sinking of an American naval vessel, the horrific terror attack against an American air base, and now these domestic attacks seem to have brought the nation to an unparalleled level of anti-Muslim sentiment.

  The president’s detractors - and there are many - accuse him of being guilty of war crimes for the slaughter of tens of thousands of men, women, and children across the Muslim world. Defenders of the president’s actions have praised the administration’s willingness to reject politically correct policies and rightfully unleash the full power of the American military against those who have waged a terror war for decades. The debate rages on and will likely only get more intense in the days and weeks to come.

  “Now in other news, American Airborne and Marine forces working in conjunction with the Israeli Defense Force have stormed into a major Hezbollah stronghold in the port city of Tyre, killing hundreds, capturing hundreds more, and securing a massive cache of rockets and weapons. The IDF continues its determined goal to destroy Hezbollah as a fighting force and end the rocket threat that Israel has been forced to endure since the failed 2006 war.

  “American and Israeli airpower continues to inflict devastating losses on Hezbollah defenses as nearly all restrictions limiting attacks on civilian infrastructure have been lifted. While Hezbollah losses continue to grow, civilian deaths have soared. Let’s turn to Samantha Jeffries who has been covering the war on the ground for the past week. Samantha, tell us what you have been seeing.”

  For the next three minutes, viewers watched a mix of video footage showing American and Israeli Air Force planes delivering close air support to soldiers on the ground, missile damage in several Israeli cities, aerial footage showing the devastated landscape of Southern Lebanon and numerous grisly images of dead Hezbollah fighters.

  The veteran news anchor was about to ask a follow-up question when he stopped in mid-sentence and said, “Excuse me Samantha, but we are just getting word of a major situation developing at the University of California’s Berkeley campus. We are taking you live to the campus where a massive protest has taken shape and swiftly became violent. Our own Callie St. Croix is on the scene. Callie, what’s going on down there?”

  The green-eyed, tall, blonde reporter was surrounded by chanting students, and a swirl of smoke temporarily enveloped the scene causing her to turn away and put a dust mask over her face for a moment. Finally, she was able to begin and spoke in an excited, loud tone, “Brian, what started out as a peaceful protest to denounce the Wolfe administration’s decision to conduct raids over the entire country, soon changed when student lookouts spotted armed federal agents. There was a sudden surge of text messages sent to the crowd ostensibly from the UC Berkeley Student Union to surround the dorms of international students and protect them from the federal agents.

  “Brian, we got a tip this morning that major raids were planned for the Berkeley campus and just as our news van pulled up four truckloads of federal agents along with two buses arrived in the main parking lot. We filmed them as they began to deploy and followed close behind.

  “The target of the raid was Berkeley’s International House that typically houses six hundred or so international students. Obviously, many are afraid of the president’s executive order, and the chilling news and social media coverage of raids around the nation gave the students of Berkeley time to get organized. Federal agents were greeted by estimates of more than two thousand students who surrounded the nearly eighty-year-old building refusing to allow the agents to enter.

  Three agents were injured when they were pelted by a mix of rocks and assorted debris by the increasingly angry crowd. Then suddenly a few hundred individuals armed with a collection of bats and pipes and dressed all in black from head to toe appeared and began setting fires and spraying agents with pepper spray. Local police armed for crowd control were called to campus and so what you are seeing now is the violent back and forth between the students and police. So far, the student line is holding but the police are getting reinforced, and things are getting ugly.”

  Brian Wilson asked, “What are the federal agents or police saying?”

  Callie was forced to yell louder as the chanting increased. “Brian, from what I was told no one expected this level of opposition and federal agents clearly were not prepared for this type of reception. Student leaders here say they are prepared to shut down the campus and intend to protect their fellow Muslim students no matter what. I am afraid this looks like just the beginning. This is Callie St. Croix reporting live from the UC Berkeley campus.”

  “Now to other news. In a shocking
move, the president’s longtime friend and Chief of Staff, Jacob “Dutch” Schultz was fired today. For more on that, let’s turn to our White House reporter…”

  Chapter Thirty Six

  October 23rd

  Al-Bukamal, Syria

  In an underground bunker two stories below the Rahman Mosque in the center of the ancient Syrian town of Al-Bukamal that sits astride the Euphrates River on the Syrian/Iraqi border, a small gathering was taking place; some would have called it a war council. A dozen men sat drinking warm tea and ate tender lamb kebabs with saffron flavored rice and other assorted side dishes. Three of the men were Syrian, three came from Iran, two were former Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon, and one each from Chechnya, Egypt, Gaza and Jordan; a true brotherhood. These were the key remaining field commanders of Allah’s Avengers.

  The bunker was surprisingly large, well-lit and unexpectedly cool. A low hum could be heard in the background as a generator provided ample power for their simple needs. The cinder block walls were covered with paper excerpts from the Koran, newspaper clippings of past victories, and posters extolling the virtues of jihad.

  It had been in use for years. Built after the American invasion of Iraq in 2003, it was used to store weapons and ferret Muslim fighters from throughout the Middle East and beyond who heard the call and wanted to take part in their generation’s great jihad against the West. Gradually expanded over the past fifteen years, it now acted as the temporary command post for Bahadur Rahimi and his followers.

  The group was unusually disciplined and rarely fought with one another, though there were natural rivalries among them. Rahimi was mindful to avoid favorites and instead purposely mixed his fighting men together regardless of nationality. All who joined knew they were required to ignore centuries-old regional or tribal rivalries and religious schisms between Shia and Sunni. Their collective enemy were infidels who defiled the Muslim world and turned brother against brother.

  Before the attack in Jerusalem, Rahimi spread his three thousand active fighters in small groups throughout the border areas of western Syria and eastern Iraq. The Americans were bringing more and more soldiers into Syria and other than small scale hit and run ambushes, Rahimi and his fighters melted into the small villages, mountain retreats, or even within population centers like Al-Bukamal.

  For a week American helicopters, planes, and ever-present hordes of armed drones roamed the skies seeking out Rahimi and his people but found nothing. But now the American presence on the ground was becoming increasingly more difficult to ignore. The Americans were moving quickly throughout western Syria and twenty-four hours ago finally announced its presence in Al-Bukamal. An American recon unit passed through town last night and set up a base camp outside the town. It was the same throughout the Euphrates River valley.

  Every few days, he would release another video encouraging his brother Muslims to rise up and strike terror throughout the Western world. Rahimi openly wept when he heard the news of the attack on the American air base by his Saudi brothers who were inspired by his stirring words. When he saw the attacks throughout Europe and now America that were occurring daily, he realized that a natural momentum was building of the great jihad he had launched when he dared the impossible in Jerusalem.

  But when reports out of America and Europe showed Muslim men being arrested and thrown in great camps across the so-called beacon of light and democracy for the world, Rahimi knew his task was nearly done.

  The tall, ruggedly handsome former Quds Force commander came to his feet and warmly said, “Who would have thought that taking up jihad would mean so many of my brothers would end up eating so well? Here you are, all eating like sheiks again. Shame on you.”

  Loud laughter rang out in the room, and when Aslan the Chechen started loudly coughing when he began choking on a hunk of lamb, the men in the room grew even rowdier with laughter. With a big broad smile, Bahadur said, “Okay my brothers, good I am happy to see you all in good spirits. We have much to thank and praise Allah for today, but now I must ask for more serious talk. The time of battle is upon us.”

  His loyal deputy, a fearsome fighter from Aleppo who first took up jihad against the Americans in the Sunni Triangle where he lost his left hand and eye to an American drone strike, stood and spoke, “Is it truly time? The men have been waiting for days, impatient to strike these infidel bastards who walk our streets and invade our homes. They are ready…as we all are my brother.”

  The two men warmly embraced, Rahimi felt a deep pride in his men and an abiding belief that whatever happens to him in the coming days, there would be no going back to before 10/10. No longer will an infidel be able to look at a Muslim man or woman and not wonder if, behind those brown eyes, smiles, and clumsy attempts endeavoring to be accepted, they despise the infidel and are waiting for a chance to kill for Allah.

  And now no Muslim man or woman living away from their brothers and sisters in the West have any doubts about what the infidel truly feels about them. They watch the looks of anger and distrust, see the hatred in the infidels’ eyes, and worry for the knock on the door that may whisk them away in the dead of night. Now, our educated and wealthy brothers and sisters from the West will want to come home to create a true paradise to raise their sons and daughters as good Muslims and help to create a strong and independent Muslim world without dreams of escaping to a West that fears and hates them. That is the dream that Bahadur Rahimi went over in his head each night before he slept.

  “Well, my brothers, Sayid is correct. The time is upon us to strike a blow for our brothers and sisters who have now joined us in jihad. What we have started, there is no going back. Let them come, and the world will watch as the pure-of-heart face death without fear, for Allah is waiting in paradise for us. Your sons and grandsons will speak of these battles and do so with pride knowing their fathers were warriors who feared nothing and gave their lives so that others may live.”

  Rahimi’s commanders roared their approval. Waving his arms to calm them, Bahadur held up his index finger to signal his men that there was more. He walked over to a wooden crate and grabbed a parcel with new cell phones and other electronic gear and passed them out. Each man also received a manila folder with detailed instructions, locations where weapons and supplies had been hidden throughout the city, where bunkers had been built, and how Rahimi planned to fight the battle.

  The meeting went on for two hours until the hour had come to disperse. Warm hugs were exchanged, most did not expect to live to see their brothers in this world. Before they started to depart, Rahimi had one last thought, “Goodbye, my brothers. Our next meal will be in paradise with Allah and the Prophet by our sides. Allah Akbar…Allah Akbar.”

  Twenty Thousand Feet in the air above the Syrian/Iraq border

  An American Air Force RC 135 V/W Rivet Joint electronic warfare plane from the 55th Wing out of Offutt Air Base, Nebraska was deep into its twelve-hour mission when strong winds started to buffet the old converted Boeing 707 airliner. The 707 could be notoriously prickly to fly against strong headwinds, so the pilot changed course and brought her down five thousand feet and took a heading closer to the city of Al-Bukamal than was originally planned.

  In the main cabin, twenty-three signals and communication specialists paid little attention to the slight change in course. They were glued to their consoles and computers looking for any signs of Allah’s Avengers and especially their leader Rahimi who had remained a ghost ever since the attack nearly two weeks ago. The trail ran cold and other than prerecorded videos released to Al Jazeera or directly to jihadist websites, the entire American intelligence community was stymied in their search.

  Until now.

  Senior Airman Keema Cunningham was diligently monitoring her computer as the Rivet Joint aircraft scanned for any open channel cell conversations. Highly advanced software enabled the classified flying intel platform to intercept thousands of transmissions and software isolated any voices or names on a watch list and cross-referenced voice
prints on file of known terror targets.

  Keema was standing and stretching to stay focused when an alert locked into cell conversation ten miles away in the border town of Al-Bukamal. The computer picked up the use of Rahimi’s name twice in the conversation. She immediately sat down, grabbed her headset and listened. Fluent in two languages, Arabic and Farsi, Keema was taking notes, even though the conversation was being recorded. When she heard the words, “the brave one commands it,” she immediately cried out for her section chief who raced from across the aircraft.

  “What do ya got?”

  Excited, but struggling to breathe, Senior Airman Cunningham calmly said, “I think we have something here, Master Sergeant. We got a positive voice match on one of Rahimi’s commanders. He referred to ‘the brave one,’ i.e., Rahimi just ordered something.”

  Keema was about to add something else when another operator sang out excitedly, “I got something here! Positive voice match - Rahimi’s Chechen commander. GPS location puts him in Al-Bukamal. Holy shit, this maybe it!”

  Several intel officers argued whether or not this was a setup of some kind. Why would Rahimi’s people suddenly start talking over open channels after being a black hole for weeks? In the end, there was no disputing the fact that positive voice print authentications confirm his senior lieutenants are somewhere in Al-Bukamal, and if they were there, maybe Rahimi was there, too.

  Twenty minutes later, two more intercepts came through, sealing the decision. The senior officer in command sent a Flash Traffic message to mission commanders at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar who then sent one to Central Command Headquarters at MacDill Air Base. Fifteen minutes later an excited junior officer assigned to the “Tank” interrupted General Samuel Duncan, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs who was on a conference call with his NATO counterparts, and handed him the priority one message.