“In the next few years there was some improvement. Israel signed peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, the later ending a forty-six-year state of war between the two. But terrorism and fighting by Arabs against Israel’s military occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip continue to this day.”
“And we’re right in the fucking middle of it,” Jefferson said. “Bet you a buck we’re heading for the West Bank on our next mini-vacation to the Holy Land.”
“That’s enough culture for today, gentlemen,” DeWitt said. “I’ve checked with the locals. There’s a ten-mile course laid out to the north of us that we can use for training. If the commander has no objections, we’ll do it with full combat gear and weapons, minus the Draegrs. We move out in twenty minutes.” DeWitt looked at Murdock, who gave him a thumbs-up.
“All right, people, let’s shag ass.”
They took the first ten miles at a slow jog, covering a mile in exactly eight minutes. They had done the eight-minute jog so often that it was routine, ingrained into their muscle patterns and brain tissue until they could come within twenty seconds of the time nine times out of ten.
At ten miles, Murdock stopped them and let the men look around the Israeli countryside. They were in a semi-residential area, with some businesses but mostly houses. Even on this fertile plain along the sea, there was little room for farming. Houses had taken over, as they had so much of the world’s best farmlands.
Murdock turned the SEALs back. “Van Dyke will lead us out. I want a seven-minutes-to-the-mile pace for the first five, Van Dyke, then move back to eight minutes for the last five. Move out.”
When they puffed into the camp and on to their barracks, they found a delegation waiting for them. Colonel Ben-Ami didn’t look pleased with the wait. Murdock recognized three of the six men as ones from the first planning session.
“SEALs, good. Murdock, wasn’t it? Glad you’re back. We have a new assignment. Timing is not so vital, but we need to do some work. Can we all use your dayroom?”
13
At the door to the dayroom, Colonel Ben-Ami motioned to Murdock. “We’ve cut the size of our planning group. We need just two SEALs.”
Murdock nodded and pointed at DeWitt, who moved over with Murdock, and they followed the rest into the dayroom. There were twelve of them standing around the Ping-Pong table. There weren’t enough chairs for them all.
“Getting right to the point, gentlemen, our next mission will take us deep into the West Bank. A little background for you on the West Bank. This is often confusing to non-Israelis, and even to some of us. The West Bank is located west of the Jordan River and the Dead Sea. On the east of it is Jordan, and Israel is on the north, west, and south. The sacred city of Jerusalem is on the very west edge of the West Bank. The Palestinian Authority administers and polices several of the major cities in the area, but not all of the West Bank.
“Israel maintains military control over much of the land including several Jewish settlements. There is an estimated population on the West Bank of just over two million. This includes both Jews and Arabs. The size of it is 2,270 square miles; that’s about twice the size of the state of Rhode Island, and a quarter of the size of the state of Israel.
“Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 war. A 1974 Arab summit conference designated the PLO as the sole representative of the West Bank Arabs. In 1988 Jordan cut legal and administrative ties with the area. Jericho was returned to Palestinian control in May 1994. An accord between Israel and the PLO expanding Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank area was signed September 28, 1995. Later agreements give Palestinians full or shared control over forty percent of West Bank territory.
“With that foundation, we move on to the project at hand. We have an Israeli presence in most of the major areas of the West Bank. What we don’t have is total and complete control. However, when we operate in the West Bank, we can rely on some friendly forces and many safe areas.
“We have a group called the Israeli Land Corps Special Forces. We call these Mistaravim units. This Hebrew word simply means becoming an Arab. These units speak and dress like Arabs and act like Arabs do as well. This is not a secret force, neither is it an elite unit. Rather, they are a regular special force unit trained for specific jobs.
“We have a sizable military force at Rama Army Base in the city of Ramallah, which is in the occupied territories. Ramallah is about fifteen miles north of the city of Jerusalem. Remember, Jerusalem is not a huge metropolis. It has about six hundred thousand people, while Tel Aviv has almost four times that number.
“Our Mistaravim units have intensive training for fifteen months concentrating on basic infantry drills, advanced infantry work, and helicopter assault skills. Then come two months of counterterrorism and hostage-recovery work. This is first as individuals, then in advanced operations with units. One of the last training periods deals with learning Arab traditions, the Arabic language, and how Arabs think. Then come civilian camouflage, looking like an Arab with hair dying, contact lenses, Arab clothing, and other elements of undercover operations.
“I’m telling you this because you’ll be working with some of these men in the coming mission. This is one that we’ve been planning for several months. We probably could do it by ourselves, but on this one we want it to be carried out by the combined forces of Britain, the U.S., and Israel.
“Needless to say, we will be in territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority. We will be the invaders. We will wear uniforms of a different type. Some of us will wear the outfits that the Authority police wear. They really are a small army of over thirty thousand men, but their training is spotty and sketchy. On a one-on-one basis, an Authority cop wouldn’t have a chance with one of our Mistaravim men. We will wear none of our own traditional uniforms. Arab clothing, brown contacts, even black wigs for some and dyed hair for others. The mission is scheduled to last for three days. That means one day moving to the target, one night to take down the target, and the third day to return to friendly territory, where Mistaravim and Regular Army troopers will be on hand to cover us and welcome us.
“Security will be unreasonably tight. We have a continuing fear that there could be a traitor among us, reporting regularly to the Authority leaders and directly to the terrorist organizations. The leaders of our various units will have sealed orders that will be opened only at the last possible moment.
“I can tell you this much. We will be taking down a terrorist training college, where young converts and enthusiasts get their training in advanced terrorism. We will also be digging out more than forty trainers and cadre, about a hundred students, and blowing up enough ordnance and explosives to flatten a square city block of four-story apartment houses. We know of three such areas, and we will undertake the job of demolishing this one and putting as many Arab terrorists in immediate contact with Allah as possible. We take no prisoners.
“For the next two days the SAS and SEALs will be issued their costumes, get their hair adjusted and their faces and hands tinted to a proper Arab shade. The third day we will be moving into the immediate area, going to Arab towns, in threes and fours, and viewing Arab life. The fourth day will be for transport.”
Colonel Ben-Ami turned to where Murdock sat. “Commander Murdock, I understand you have a newly developed shoulder weapon that can fire various types of twenty-millimeter rounds. Is that right?”
“Yes, sir, Colonel. The twenties come in HE, armor-piercing, and smoke, and any of them can be detonated as an airburst up to about a mile.”
“Airburst?” The colonel frowned.
“Yes, sir. The round is laser-sighted. The feedback from the laser in a hundredth of a second sets the fuse in the round for the number of rotations the round needs to make until it hits the target. When the spinning round reaches the correct number of turns, the round explodes. It’s great for shooting around corners, over buildings, and hitting the reverse slope of a ridge.”
“Bring along all of those weapons y
ou have and as many rounds as you can carry.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Now, any general questions?”
One of the SAS men held up his hand. “Sir, will we be working in our units or will we be dispersed among your Mistaravim specialists?”
“Undecided, Captain. We like both ideas. Your units have been trained in teamwork, cooperation, knowing what the buddy on your right and left will do in most situations. That’s hard to break up. However, we believe that some mixing of our specialists in with those units will give us the most effective fighting forces.”
“Sir?” Murdock said.
“Commander.”
“Will there be time for any fieldwork with live firing in this mixed-team operation? I believe that it would greatly benefit my SEALs to have such a cooperative training run.”
“Been some talk of it. Would that be beneficial to the SAS troops as well?”
“Yes, sir,” the SAS captain who spoke before said. “It would give us a firmer operational level when we get into the actual mission.”
“Then it’s done. We’ll work it out. That will come at the end of the sessions, when you’re in your new uniforms and costumes and Arab civilian camouflage. Yes, I think that will be good.”
“Transport?” one of the SAS men asked.
“It will not be a long trip. We will be going in as regular troop rotation replacements at the Rama Army Base near Ramallah we talked about before. We’ll go in at night in closed trucks, so no notice will be taken of your disguises. Transport to the mission area will be by civilian sedan in staggered and random routes so we don’t alert anyone. Radio control will be strict and timing will be decisive. That’s as much as I can tell you about the actual mission.”
The Israeli officer looked around the group. “If there are no more questions, we’ll be meeting at Building 187 tomorrow morning at 0800 to get our preliminary operation started. Now, one word of caution. This is not a competition between the services or nations. This is a cooperative mission. I know both SAS and SEAL men are highly trained and kept at razor-sharp efficiency. I have read after-action reports on many of your amazing missions. What our instructors will do in the next three days is to try to enhance your current skills, and get them slanted into this unique situation you’ll soon find yourself in. We will appreciate the intense cooperation of every man in this operation. That’s all. You’re dismissed.”
Murdock and DeWitt watched the rest of the men go through the outside door, then went to the connecting door into their equipment room. Six SEALs stood there with grins all around.
“Hot damn, we’re gonna get some action after all,” Canzoneri said.
“Eavesdropping?” Murdock asked as he came through the door.
“No, sir,” Jaybird said. “Just watching the TV from way over here. That colonel has a parade-ground voice, doesn’t he?”
“Yeah, we’re going into the West Bank,” Donegan said.
“Holy shit, we’re gonna kick Arab ass,” Frank Victor shouted.
“Holy shit?” Lampedusa asked. “The Pope been using our latrine again?”
Bill Bradford whacked him with his floppy hat.
“So what do you think, Commander?” Senior Chief Sadler said. “We going to get into some heavy action here?”
“Looks like it, Senior Chief. We better be sure we’re ready. Like the man said, 0800. You guys get chow? Did DeWitt and I miss it?”
“Oh, we chowed down, Commander,” Franklin said.
“Figured,” DeWitt said. “Can we run a tab on Stroh at the officers’ club?”
“Let’s try.”
14
Desert training area
Near Tel Aviv, Israel
Murdock lifted up at the edge of the wadi until the soft gray, civilian-type hat showed enough so he could get his eyes up and see over the sand and rocks. Ahead of him were two houses, both with hundreds of bullet holes in them. He saw someone in one window and no other sign of occupants. He dropped down and used his Motorola. “Force One, I have one terr showing in the window of the first house. That’s just one terr that I can see.”
“This is Force Two,” his earpiece responded. “We see more than a dozen armed men behind the first house. They’re trying to suck you into a trap. Abort scouting mission. Instead, open fire with three of your twenties with airbursts at each side of the house. Weapons are free.”
“Twenties one and two take the port side, three and four the starboard. Fire when ready, one round each.”
Murdock waited a moment. “Simulating the firing of four twenties on the first house. Over.”
“Half the force behind the house is down. Let’s move out Force One and Two with assault fire on the first house. Over the top, now!”
Murdock waved his arm forward and his mixed Force One of Six SAS men, sixteen SEALs, and ten Israeli Special Ground Forces charged over the top of the wadi, formed into an assault line, and began firing as they walked forward with a relatively straight line. After fifty yards, and when they were fifty yards away from the first house, the command came on the radios to charge forward running and firing.
They ran, and the line bent and angled and then straightened. Quickly the men came to the house, stopped their assault fire, and used fragger grenades through empty doors and windows. Then on radio command, the two forces of thirty-two men each surged inside the six-room, two-story house and cleared each room in order using flash-bang grenades, then rushing into the rooms. Murdock waited for the report. He had it twenty seconds later.
“House one clear,” Ching reported.
“Four minutes and thirty-two seconds,” a new voice said on the Motorola. They had been reprogrammed to the Israeli personal radio frequency. “Not bad, a bit off our usual standard, but we didn’t kill any of our own chaps. So, good show. We’ll assemble in the living room for a final critique.”
Murdock went into the large room with the others. He looked at his hands and arms. They and his face had been given an instant three-week suntan, a soft shade of brown the makeup artist said would fade out and be gone in six weeks.
The critique by Colonel Ben-Ami took fifteen minutes and covered everything from the way they entered the sedans, to the timing on the flash-bangs and the assault fire. When it ended, Murdock decided he hadn’t learned anything new and that he and his platoon could work well with the other professionals they would be fighting beside. He had hardly recognized some of the SEALs when they put on their Arab clothes. They had been wearing them for two days now. None of his men had on wigs, but half of them had their hair dyed dark black. It would grow out, the hairdresser said. Or if they washed their hair every day after the current assignment was over, the black dye would fade out in two weeks.
Murdock looked back at Colonel Ben-Ami at the front of the room.
“This is our last training session,” the colonel said. “I think the past four days have been worthwhile. Gives us practice working in our new uniforms if nothing else. Some of you still look a little self-conscious about your Arab clothes. That will be gone when you’re on an Arab street with lots of Arabs around you. So, we will have a briefing at 1900 in Building 54. Our civilian transport will leave just after 2200. Remember, no wallets, papers, letters, anything that could identify you on your person. Each of you will have well-used Arab identification papers, the usual for this area, and three hundred in used dinars in case you get cut off or somehow entangled. For you Yanks, a dinar is about the same as a U.S. dollar, worth a little more actually. Are there any questions?”
“Once the target is taken down, how do we find our transport back to Ramallah?” an SAS man asked.
“Your six- or seven-man squads will each have a designated sedan. The sedan will be left near the target. After your independent mission is over, move back to the sedan for a ride home. There shouldn’t be any real trouble. If there are roadblocks, you will be dispersed enough going home to prevent any connection. Just use your identity papers, and you should be fine.”
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br /> “If not, do we shoot our way through the roadblock?”
“That will be a field decision that the senior officer or man in charge in each sedan will have to make. We’ve been over the assignments of each squad and the timing of each of the actions. Is there any man who does not know the number of his squad, who his squad leader is, and what his squad has as its primary mission?”
No hands went up. There were seventy-six men crowded into the room. Thirty Israeli special ground forces, thirty SAS Britishers, and the SEALs. Two Israelis went with each of seven four-man SAS squads. Three Israelis went with each of five SEAL groups. Four groups had three SEALs each, and one had four SEALs. It made up twelve fighting units, each with its own target and commander.
“No one has asked about wounded,” the colonel continued. “We have inclusive medics; however, there are not enough for each six- or seven-man squad. If you have a medical emergency, use your radio and give your location and ask the closest medic to report to you. Best we can do. Remember this, we leave no one behind. We leave no wounded, no dead, and certainly do not allow ourselves to be taken prisoner.
“We have been over our assignments a dozen times. They should be memorized and letter perfect. This is not a sequential type of attack. No one squad depends on another doing a task before it can do its work. Once your job is done, ask if anyone nearby needs help. If not, haul ass and return to your transport and drive out of the area. We do not expect any concentrated resistance from the Arabs.
“You have seen the mix of our squads. This is for security reasons. Six SEALs with no one speaking Arabic would be totally lost in the middle of this situation if, for example, their transport failed. We have put three Israelis with each SEAL squad, and we have also put two Israelis with each of the SAS squads. So far, it has worked out well. Our Israeli Mistaravim members are adequate to fluent in Arabic, and that could be a lifesaver for a squad that is cut off or in trouble somewhere. We hope that it is a precaution not needed.”
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