by Isaac Stormm
His thoughts turned to Ground Zero. The rain had started while he was reading names of the deceased on the memorial wall. No one recognized him, though the crowd numbered about 50. Didn’t recognize Lesnar either. And the sanctity of the place wasn’t lost on them. They said nothing as they walked around the square foundations, the waterfalls drowning out quiet conversation of the people they passed. At one point, a cool breeze dipped from the sky blowing down the busy avenues to swirl about the canyons of buildings that stood guard over the site. Nothing lived here anymore. Only the names and memories.
The journey concluded at the base of the 1,776 foot high memorial, One World Trade Center, its glass subdued by the clouds spattering them with rain, almost as if it were weeping. Then, they headed for the car, saying nothing back to the embassy, each alone with his thoughts. An hour later, after notifying the Knessett about the meeting, with a quick handshake and thank yous to the staff, Grozner headed for JFK.
The phone rang. Answering it, he found Philpot on the other end. “The Palestinians are about to begin another intifada, six shot dead in Gaza. The West Bank is simmering too.”
“Damn it. Things are bad enough. Can’t afford any more uprisings. We’ll have to use a heavy hand. After I convene the Knesset, we will decide on the course of action. As for now, keep the patrols on their regular routine.”
“Have you seen the news?”
“Ours or the U.S.?”
“U.S. news outlets are reporting the Iranians have said there is a real possibility that investigators can travel to the suspected site. That throws a wrench in the works.”
“I know.”
“I’m going to start checking my news page on the phone. See if I can deduce any more from what has already been said.”
The phone vibrated. Another caller trying to get through. It was the secretary to the speaker of the parliament, Joshua Lent. “The Knesset has agreed to convene at 1 p.m. today, Prime Minister.”
“Any trouble from rabble-rousers in the labor?”
“No, they seem calm and eager to find out what’s been going on.”
“Contact the necessary people there and tell them they’ll know everything I do by the end of the day. That’s sufficient for now.”
He wasn’t trying to be terse, just make it clear he’d deal with Labor the same way he always had. With a firm hand, unwilling to compromise on national security. Something they had done with the Palestinians years before. Even handing AK-47s to their police forces that were then turned against them at a later date. He now played the role of a leader who must be resolute, and convincing.
He looked at the time, then figured on trying to sleep enough to where he could still turn in at a regular hour in Tel Aviv. Four hours. That should be enough. He slipped the phone back into his pocket and let the weight of his eyelids drop. Within minutes he was out, the full and reassuring whine of the engines his lullaby.
Chapter Fifteen
May 22
11:15 A.M.
Southern Lebanon
The schoolhouse was located between two small hills that led to an equally small village a few hundred meters away. Painted white, the fading stencil of U.N. on one of the walls left no doubt as to its original owners. Every day, except for special occasions, the school was attended by nearly 200 elementary age children. It was the perfect front. Underneath, in its basement where an old but still functional air conditioner worked to send cool air through the many vents, two rectangular tables set against a moldy musty smelling wall. Each had four LCD screens with a keyboard and mouse in front, and the wiring collected into a bundle and led away to a bank of servers.
The men sitting at each one almost jumped from their chairs when Zarin was announced in an authoritative voice over the air conditioners hum. They stepped back from their positions and stood ramrod straight, hands clasped to their sides.
“These are pilots,” the aide said to Zarin. “Each has gone through the necessary training to serve as our drone pilots. Look at this.”
They reached out and typed some characters on the keyboards. The monitors lost their individual scenes and instead featured the same aerial view from somewhere over a small city.
“All are interchangeable. One man can control one drone, take over the others if necessary, or command as many as we can put in the sky. We have other places like this in the basements of houses in the city of Tyre.” Zarin assumed the aide wanted him to review the men, so he did the customary inspection walk past the four then the aide motioned for them to sit back down. When they did, he pointed at a table on the other wall. “These are our machines,” he said.
Zarin looked at another table where four Quadcopter RC drones lay in varying stages of assembly. Made of what looked like a kind of metal, they had the shape of an x with a propeller at each of the four points. In the center, a small platform capable of carrying a lightweight load, had wires intersecting around a line of stubby mounting points.
“We have assembly of these taking place all across Lebanon. Even into Syria. These are just to show how it’s done.”
The aide picked up one. “This takes off like a helicopter. It then transforms into level flight by tipping ninety degrees from a horizontal to vertical axis. After our modifications, we can mount five kilograms of a shape charge or high explosive here on the center stubs. We perfected a camera setup for guidance and our latest is to use a smartphone as well. This allows it GPS navigation, so even if we lose linkage, it can still hit stationary targets whose coordinates have been programmed in. Courtesy of a deal we made with the U.N.”
“My God, aren’t you worried about getting discovered?”
“No, they are bought then siphoned off through front companies posing as charities throughout the Middle East. A container here, a crate there. Some careful bribes in some seaports and everything is signed off as part of a standard large shipment of clothing, medical equipment, even food.”
“They would go mad.”
“Most probably. But since we’ve been doing this for several months and we’ve gotten so many phones, if they do find out, it will become one of the biggest scandals in its history. Given how timid they act in this part of the world, they’ll remain shy about asking too many questions.” He picked up a small rectangular package and set it on the platform. “It works like this. Plastic explosive or this.” He picked up a copper-colored cone. “Shaped charge. They mount here in the center and a phone has just enough room to mount beside it. We could use their cameras as backups, but the ones hobbyists use are clearer and not as fuzzy.” He held up a miniature square barely the dimension of an index finger with a dark lens in its center. “Like these.”
Zarin took it, looking it over. Not even enough to make a simple paper weight. “The range?”
“Thirty miles. However, the loiter time is reduced to five minutes if we have not reached the objective by then. The drone simply falls out of the sky and self-destructs when it hits the ground. We’re working on extended range types but those are somewhat in the future. To make them effective, we have to reduce our loads where they are too minuscule to cause much damage.”
“I want to see a demonstration,” he said.
“We can schedule one for tonight.”
“I want to hit a civilian target.”
“That can be arranged,” the aid offered. “We can target any of the kibbutzimthat you wish. Even more than one target as well.”
“Tonight, we will prove this system. If it works, we discovered a whole new era of warfare with the Jews. One that we can win. Tell me, how do these things see at night?”
“I’m sorry but in this case they don’t. Such gear is too heavy. We will depend on the GPS and use lights on the ground once we reach the vicinity of our objective.”
It hadn’t worked in the day and he was curious to push a little further about how it was going to work with no navigation. “GPS jamming, do we know if the Zionists are using it?”
“It is a concern, but I think f
or a short period, they probably won’t be employed at the border areas. Not enough important places.”
“How many do you plan to use tonight?”
“We can use up to fifty and more if that is what you request. We’re interested in showing how the swarm technique works.”
He was interested too. A swarm technique is when many drones simply overwhelm a target the way an insect colony such as ants would overwhelm a larger foe. Tonight, with Allah’s blessing, Israel and the world would experience it in real time.
“Make the necessary arrangements. I will no longer meet you here, instead find another house.”
“It will be done, sir.”
Parliament Building
Tel Aviv, Israel
1:03 P.M.
The seats behind the great round table filled up quickly. It had an air of uneasiness about it. The lack of chatter told Grozner the opposition was keen to hear his explanations.
Grozner’s eyes swept the great round table a full turn, looking at each member. Closest to him was his cabinet. Across was the opposition. Once satisfied all who needed to be present were, he cleared his throat, gave a glance at Philpot and Metzer, and began.
“We are here today to determine the actions our nation will take in the near future. I know you have heard of the Americans’ desire to visit the suspected site. I am here today to tell all of you, whether they do or don’t shall make no difference.” Whispers became audible as he waited for the reaction to subside. Surprise? No, shock was more prevalent in their looks toward him. “At 11 p.m. on May 24th, exactly nine days after the Iranians sent their message with the atom to us, we will commence hostilities in self-defense. Without going into minute detail now, I will tell you that a massive air campaign will commence for twenty-four hours.” He paused. “That is all I’ve been told that is needed. Simultaneously, a cyber campaign to last indefinitely will be commenced. I also have to tell you this: All of the high ranking Iranians from the Supreme Council to the leaders of the Revolutionary Guards and al-Quds forces will be targeted. The time for destroying everything and yet leaving their leadership intact to threaten us later is nothing more than a feel good policy for idiots. I won’t take that risk.”
“We must have help,” came a plea from across the table.
Hollow-minded fool, Grozner thought. “No, we do not. If the U.S. is onboard with us before, then they will be welcomed. If not, they can watch.” He swallowed briskly, looking across the table like he owned the chair in which they sat. “Now back to topic. We will shut down all Iranian communications from Tehran to any city or village they try to contact. Tehran will be placed under, essentially, a communications siege. Now, I want to tell you about a thorn in our side and how we’ve found a remedy.” No way he could say might have. He had the audience by the throat and had to drown them in certainty. “Qom, as you well know, has long been the most risky target due to its layout and depth below the surface. Colonel Foxmann has devised a plan to put troops on the ground to assault the location. This ensures the most difficult target’s destruction.”
“I might also add that if the Americans decide to stand by us,” Metzer said, “given it is so late for split-second decisions, we will not share a strike plan with them. We will simply suggest to them targets and use what we assigned to them to reinforce strikes elsewhere.”
“The Americans have much heavier ordinance.” Speaker Lent said. “If they decide in our favor, we should let Qom be the target for their B-2s. They can carry the MOAB.”
The MOAB was a 30,000 pound bomb with a hardened penetrator designed for hitting targets deep underground. The problem was, no one really knew how deep the Qom installation was. Or how many underground galleries or storage areas there were that needed hitting. Too many unknowns. Special Forces were better for this.
“I have thought of that,” Grozner replied. “And that’s why Colonel Foxmann’s plan, as risky as it may sound to some of you, is our best bet of a complete destruction.”
“What if they’re captured?” Another opposition member spoke up.
“For that, I have been personally assured by Colonel Foxmann that each man shall have in his possession one cyanide capsule. If he’s not able to reach it and still has a weapon, he may use that on himself instead. None will allow themselves to be captured.”
“Prime Minister, may I please inform them of what happens after all the strikes are done?” Metzer asked.
Grozner nodded.
“Immediately after the last bit of ordinance is expended and Colonel Foxmann’s group, who will be the last, leaves Iranian airspace, we will go on a full nationwide alert and close the borders with Gaza and the West Bank. Southern Lebanon will remain unoccupied by us but our border will be reinforced by doubling the Iron Dome systems and tripling troop numbers. We’ll keep the border sealed until Hezbollah attempts to make a first strike. If the Palestinians choose to fire rockets at us, we will react immediately by entering their territories. We will make complete use of air power in these areas as well.”
“Now,” Grozner felt it was the opportune time to spring on them what he’d been thinking on the plane. “I think regardless of whether America stands with us, they will be drawn into the conflict. Iran has pledged to shut down the Strait of Hormuz and I suspect their efforts will lead to a confrontation with American vessels unless Anderson authorizes them to leave the area.” He bit his lip, looking over the table at the sullen faces. “So you see, gentlemen,” he continued, “we will have our ally with us whether they want to or not. I think even deep down inside Anderson knows that. Just as well, there was no way America was going to avoid this conflict anyway.”
“And you know that?”
Grozner didn’t catch who said it. “You might say, yes, I do.”
“Now is not the time for gut instinct,” Houser said. “If I didn’t know you better, I would say you’re staking our futures on a hope.”
Grozner fumed inside, his heart beating hard against his chest. “That’s bullshit.” He slammed his fist down on the table. “Do you not think that I’m scared to death while making these decisions? That I haven’t lost hours of sleep over these past days wondering what to do?”
Houser shot up from his chair. “Don’t pull this self-absorbed act with me, Grozner. You think any of the rest of us have had it easy since we found out? You at least have the opportunity to see things in real time. We have to wait for you to tell us most of these things.”
Grozner rose slowly, looking into Houser’s eyes the whole time. His gaze could have burned through a steel wall. Houser was stronger than that, though. “Please. Sit down.”
The two stood there for a moment, the audience captivated by the spectacle. It was almost like they were waiting to see who blinked first, or let himself back in the chair.
Grozner looked down at the table, and eased back down. Drawing a deep breath, he looked over to Houser who was seated too. He desired the man to speak first.
“None of us are under any illusions about what you and your cabinet face. And I must tell you that for the first time in my life, I’m glad I’m sitting on this side of the table instead of yours.”
Grozner ignored the shot. “Regardless, I need the government to stand with me. No more politics. History and the future demand it.”
“Prime Minister, we all are fully aware of the situation and the pressures you’re under. It is about how we conduct ourselves after our attack that worries us. None of us are under any illusion that this will be the greatest test the Israeli people have ever undergone. And if we do not have our most powerful ally, and we get hit hard from one direction or several and we have problems stopping it, it may sound callous, but I will move to have a no-confidence vote and see you kicked out of office,” Houser said.
“My God, man. Even now you play politics.” Philpot was clearly stunned by the tone.
“Not politics. I’m an insurance man by profession. I just want to make sure the head of our government knows he cannot esc
ape judgment if he, as I may say, fucks up.”
Grozner knew it was a threat. Knew Houser would like nothing more than to see him go down in flames. He was way too deep in politics to think otherwise. He just showed he still wanted to be prime minister. Okay, Grozner thought. Give the fool what he wants. Placate him. Maybe then he’ll fully understand the gravity of what I face, that I don’t care about his threats and that I conduct myself as a commander-in-chief. “All right. If it means that much to you, I will not move to stop you if we arrive at such a situation. Until then, I want your pledge that none of you will make any noise that is contrary to the official position my cabinet gives before, during, or after our attack.”
Houser began nodding quickly like a man who just bagged the biggest kill of a hunt. “Very well. You have my word. You will not hear any counterproductive conversation from the side of the aisle unless we do not like the direction the country takes.”
“Thank you. Now I will let Michael speak about new intelligence developments.”
Philpot set his crossed arms on the table, cleared his throat and drew a single sheet of paper nearer to him. He had deliberately turned it over so no one could peek.
“This is an intelligence report I received just a few hours ago. Hezbollah is getting deeper into the drone business. There’s a new man in Beirut that is supposed to oversee it. We’ve nicknamed him, ‘The BeeKeeper.’ He’s Iranian, sent by the Ayatollah. I suspect we’ll hear a hell of a lot more from him after we attack. We only have what he looks like. Facial features and such. He’s about 5’11 and was a member of the Al-Quds force. We suspect he was efficient in his previous occupation by having lots of blood spilled under his direction. Given how things are boiling right now, I have to believe his appointment was likely last minute. Tehran wanted to personally oversee this new department of Hezbollah.”