It was clear to the hostages that their destiny was in the hands of a man bent on revenge. The few that recognized Jonah Meyerson were confused. Why would a Jewish man turn on his own people? Was he really a Palestinian? They all feared for their lives.
Jonah continued, “Anyone over sixty, either man or woman, will be moved to the fitness building and the remaining women will be placed in the recreation rooms on the first floor. All the men and boys over twelve will remain in the auditorium.”
The procession of people continued for almost ten minutes as they dispersed to their designated areas.
Jonah was ready for the second step. “Remove all of your clothing and lay on the floor.”
Again a mild protest came from the group, but they complied. Most laid down on their clothes to protect themselves from the cold hardwood floor.
Jonah, instilling more fear into the group shouted. “Now you are equal to the masses of poor impoverished Palestinians living on almost nothing, eking out a living to feed their children with no hope in sight for the future.”
He was pleased with the results. As the masses of naked bodies lay on the floor, several of the terrorists were stringing explosives around the room. Those who dared to look up, told their huddling neighbors. Soon the entire auditorium was aware of the rigged explosives. Some wept.
7:15 A.M.: Most of the Boca Raton Police Force was mobilized along with many of the Palm Beach County Sheriff Officers. None were happy to be pulled from their families on Christmas Day. At the various cell tower locations police cars congregated, roping off the area and waiting for the bomb squad to scour for hidden explosives.
Officer Dunlap of the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office drove his patrol car to a designated FEU substation to stand guard. As he passed the north entrance into Beekman Estates he glanced at the entry. The bridge is gone. He immediately radioed in his discovery, turned his vehicle around and drove into the entrance.
The terrorist at the gatehouse radioed the action over his VHF Transceiver. “Sheriff’s patrol car is approaching the north entrance.”
These were the words Jonah had been waiting for. Finally they could make their presence known to the world.
Officer Dunlap slowly got out of his vehicle to investigate with gun drawn. He took several steps towards the destroyed bridge when Sergeant Navarro gave orders from the loudspeaker at the gatehouse and it startled him.
“Don’t approach any further. We have you covered on three sides. Drop your weapon.”
The officer was surprised by the announcement and crouched down, pointing his gun at the gatehouse.
Just at that time a pickup truck with the machine gun mounted on the back pulled up. The pickup spun around and from across the destroyed bridge opened fire on the officer’s vehicle.
The officer, only forty feet from the police car, dove to the ground covering his head. Within thirty seconds the vehicle was riddled with bullets, setting the fuel tank on fire and causing a spectacular explosion.
Sergeant Navarro spoke over the gatehouse loudspeaker, “Get up and leave your weapon on the ground. Put your hands over your head and walk to the edge of the canal.”
A terrorist appeared with a burlap sack and tossed it over the canal in the direction of the officer.
Sergeant Navarro spoke again, “Pick up the sack. Inside you’ll find detailed instructions for the United States Government. Consider the United States and the Zionist country of Israel under attack.”
The officer, following the directions, picked up the sack and turned it upside down. Out fell a large manila envelope. He took the envelope and, walking backward, retreated to the road. There he placed a call into dispatch using his portable radio, relaying the events that just took place. Within five minutes another sheriff’s patrol car came by to pick him up.
“Damn, you wouldn’t believe what just happened. They shot up my car with a machine gun and I thought I was going to be next. They said the United States and Israel are under attack.”
Police radios were crackling with the news. A joint headquarters was set up in the Boca Raton Police Station and the envelope was brought there. Captain Brenner of the Boca Raton Police Department and Sheriff Keith Patterson of Palm Beach County were on hand. Captain Brenner and Sheriff Patterson took the envelope back to the captain’s office to read the contents in private. As they read they commented to one another that no one in the United States or in Israel would abide by their demands. That was until they came upon the last paragraph, which sent shivers down their spines.
TO THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE ZIONIST STATE OF ISRAEL, THE FREE AND INDEPENDENT MUSLIMS FOR JUSTICE MAKE THE FOLLOWING DEMANDS IN THE NAME OF ALLĀH, FOR ALL THE OPPRESSED MUSLIMS, ARABS AND PALESTINIANS THAT HAVE BEEN PERSECUTED BY YOU AND YOUR FELLOW NATIONS.
1) ISRAEL IMMEDIATELY FREES ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS THAT THEY HAVE IMPRISONED AND RELEASES THEM TO THEIR RESPECTIVE COUNTRIES.
2) ANY PALESTINIAN, THEIR OFFSPRING OR THEIR PRESENT FAMILIES WHO WERE FORCED FROM THEIR LAND AND HOMES IN 1948 BY THE ZIONISTS OF ISRAEL, IN WHAT IS CALLED AL NAKBA (THE CATASTROPHE), WILL HAVE THE RIGHT TO RETURN TO THEIR HOMELAND IN ISRAEL AND TAKE POSSESSION OF SUCH PROPERTY. LAND AND/OR BUILDINGS THAT HAVE BEEN DESTROYED OR ANNEXED BY THE ZIONIST MUST BE PAID FOR AT PRESENT-DAY VALUES.
3) THE UNITED STATES MUST PAY THE PALESTINIAN NATIONAL AUTHORITY ANNUALLY THE SAME AMOUNT OF FUNDING OR COMPENSATION PAID TO THE STATE OF ISRAEL. REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PALESTINE TERRITORIES AND THE UNITED STATES WILL SIGN A TREATY WITH THIS CONDITION. THE TREATY WILL THEN BE RATIFIED AS BINDING AT THE UNITED NATIONS.
4) ONCE THESE DEMANDS ARE MET, ALL OF ALLāH’S SOLDIERS MUST BE ALLOWED TO RETURN TO A MIDDLE EASTERN COUNTRY.
IF THESE FOUR DEMANDS ARE NOT MET, WE WILL DESTROY THE TWO FLORIDA ELECTRIC UTILITIES NUCLEAR REACTORS AT FLORIDA RIDGE AND CUTLER POINT, WHICH ARE NOW UNDER OUR FULL CONTROL, AND KILL THE THREE THOUSAND HOSTAGES THAT WE HOLD AT BEEKMAN ESTATES.
IN THE NAME OF ALLāH, MOST GRACIOUS, MOST MERCIFUL
NASIH MAHMOUD RAHMAN
Captain Brenner and Sheriff Patterson sat silence for almost a minute after reviewing the contents of the note.
“Do you really think they have the nuclear reactors? You’d think FEU Security would have contacted law enforcement if there had been an assault on their facilities. I haven’t heard anything,” the sheriff said.
Captain Brenner just shook his head. “I’ve no idea. It took us almost five and a half hours to figure out hostages had been taken at Beekman Estates. We need to contact the various county sheriff departments and the Florida Highway Patrol immediately, along with the FBI. God knows how we’re going to find anyone on Christmas day.”
Concerned that the nuclear reactors were indeed in the hands of terrorists, the sheriff said, “Let’s contact the Air Force Base in Homestead and the Coast Guard Station in Fort Lauderdale and let them alert the federal authorities and the Pentagon.”
Captain Brenner dialed 411. The information operator didn’t answer for almost two minutes before finding the numbers for the requested facilities.
The U.S. Coast Guard seaman who was lucky enough to pull duty on Christmas Day was in no mood for a prank from what he thought was a fellow crewmember. “Goddammit Jeffery, you know I was supposed to be with my girlfriend in Sarasota before the Chief screwed me over. This isn’t funny.”
“Son, this isn’t Jeffery. I’m Captain Harry Brenner of the Boca Raton Police Department and I don’t give a damn about your sex life. Get me the officer in charge or I’ll make sure your next assignment will be in Alaska.”
“Yes, Sir,” snapped the seaman. He immediately contacted Ensign Brooks who, being the lowest-ranking officer on the base, had duty for the holiday. It only took five minutes for the ensign to have a faxed copy of the terrorist’s demands in his hands.
7:45 A.M.: Ensign Brooks called the U.S.C.G. Command Center located at the Seventh District Headquarters in Miami, Florida.
The U.S.C.G. Command Center is
manned twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, year round. Lieutenant Perkins was the Officer of the Day at the command center. The National Terrorism Advisory System, or NTAS, had no warning issued for either an elevated or imminent threat alert. No one had any information of a possible terrorist attack on two nuclear reactor sites.
7:46 A.M.: The lieutenant, upon reading a faxed copy of the terrorist’s demands, immediately implemented MARSEC Level 3. Level 3 is a defined level for which further specific protective security measures shall be maintained for a limited period of time when a transportation security incident is probable, imminent, or has occurred, even though it may not be possible to identify the specific target. Unfortunately for the lieutenant, the targets were very specific.
7:48 A.M.: The lieutenant contacted the U.S. Coast Guard station at Fort Pierce to dispatch the USCGC Cormorant, a Marine Protector Class patrol boat, to standby offshore on the Atlantic side of the Florida Ridge nuclear reactor site. The nuclear reactors were located on a narrow strip of land surrounded on the west side by the Indian River.
The water was too shallow for the Cormorant to navigate. The ship’s captain had already radioed the Port Saint Lucie sheriff’s office, advising them of a possible terrorist attack on the site. The sheriff’s office dispatched the marine patrol to take up positions on the Indian River side of the plant. They also routed two patrol cars to verify the security at the nuclear sites.
Ordered into position by the U.S.C.G. Command Center Lieutenant was the USCGC Chandeleur, an Island Class patrol boat, and the USCGC Dolphin, a Marine Protector Class Patrol Boat, to patrol the area from Long Reef to Turtle Reef. The reefs located in the Atlantic Ocean were thirteen miles from the Cutler Point nuclear reactor site. Reefs and shallow water, which had sunken many a ship, prevented them from getting closer.
The orders for all the Coast Guard patrol boats were to prevent any activity that could support terrorist activity from the Atlantic Ocean. The Miami Dade Marine Patrol was also alerted and, they moved up the channels towards the Cutler Point facility where there was no deep-water access.
7:50 A.M.: Sheriff Keith Patterson finally was able to contact the Officer of the Day at Homestead Joint Air Reserve Base in Homestead, Florida. He explained the situation to the O.O.D. and faxed the terrorist demand note to the base. Upon reading the fax the O.O.D. sounded the alarm for the Homestead Air Reserve Base Special Response Team.
The team members were assembling at their UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters when the squad leader came running to the group shouting, “We have information that terrorists have taken over the FEU nuclear reactors at Cutler Point and Florida Ridge, and they have three thousand hostages at a community in Boca Raton according to the police. We’re going to split into three groups of two choppers each and scout the three sites for verification.”
Two Blackhawks would travel to the Florida Ridge site, which was one hundred thirty miles away. The UH-60 Blackhawk only had a range of three hundred twenty nautical miles, and at a speed of one hundred thirty-nine knots, it would take almost an hour to reach the target. Two Blackhawks headed for Boca Raton, sixty-five miles away. The last two were within five miles of their target Cutler Point and were en route.
Florida Ridge Nuclear Reactor Site
7:59 A.M.: With sirens wailing, two sheriff cars sped on route A1A towards the site.
A terrorist stationed on the dome of containment building heard the sirens and spotted the lead vehicle in the scope of his sniper rifle. He squeezed off one 50-caliber round, which blew out the windshield as it hit the officer in the chest killing him instantly. The police car, traveling seventy miles per hour, spun out of control, violently smashing through the highway barrier over the inlet and sending the vehicle plunging into the water below. The officer in the second police car slammed on his breaks. Spinning the vehicle around, he headed back as another round shattered his rear window.
“Officer down, officer down,” radioed the sheriff deputy. “We were fired upon as we neared the entrance to the FEU site. His car is in the water. I turned around, but my car has been hit. The shot took out the rear window. Couldn’t see where it came from. We need backup now!” As the deputy radioed for help, a second bullet penetrated the roof of his car. “Jesus, I just took a second shot through the roof. I’m almost a mile from the site. What the hell are they shooting with?”
The sheriff’s office radioed for additional cars and the warning went out to all patrols that they must stay at least a mile or more away from the FEU nuclear site. Route A1A in both directions was closed.
Cutler Point Nuclear Reactor Site
8:01 A.M.: Terrorists were scanning the surrounding area with binoculars when they heard the whirling sound of the Blackhawk’s rotors in the distance. They scrambled for cover and waited. The terrorist sharpshooter sighted his target, the lead Blackhawk, and fired one shot that penetrated the copilot’s window, barely missing him and flying through the metal roof leaving a five-inch hole.
The pilot’s reaction was immediate as he banked the machine to the right. “What the hell was that? They just put a hole through us from half a mile away.”
The second chopper, hearing of the hit, also banked right moving away from the site.
The transmission was heard not only at Homestead, but also at the United States Southern Command in Miami. The USSOUTHCOM center had already received a faxed copy of the terrorist demand note and was awaiting verification. Now that there was confirmation of terrorist activity at the Cutler Point nuclear reactor site, it was safe to assume that all three sites were in the hands of the terrorists. The lieutenant colonel at command headquarters immediately picked up the hotline phone to the Pentagon and gave his report.
The Pentagon
8:10 A.M.: As elsewhere in the nation, the staff in the Pentagon was at a reduced level when the alert came in. The colonel on duty at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, after confirming the action against the Blackhawk and verifying the demand note, had his staff immediately contact General Theodore Alexander Knight, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at his home in Manassas, Virginia.
The general had been awake for almost two hours before the phone call. His three-year-old grandson had awoken not only his parents but also his grandmother and grandfather, anxious to open presents at six o’clock in the morning. His grandson always referred to him as Grandpa “Teddy”, for he couldn’t pronounce Theodore. No one in the Pentagon was going to call General Knight, Teddy.
General Knight was born in Owensboro, Kentucky. His father, a minister in the Progressive Christian Church, was a strict disciplinarian who had a very parochial view on religion. Jesus Christ was the true Son of God and all other religions were of a pagan nature. The bigoted minister had constantly referred to the Jews as the killers of Jesus and the Muslim occupation of the Holy Land as heresy, and instilled those thoughts in his young son’s mind. Theodore Knight had equal contempt for all other religions including many Christian denominations, especially the Catholic Church. At the age of fourteen he became a born-again Christian.
Theodore Alexander Knight, after graduating from West Point, rose through the ranks as a young lieutenant exhibiting a unique ability to bring exceptional efficiency to whatever area he was in command of. His skills were not lost on an army command whose main objective was to make the U.S. Army fighting force smaller and more mobile, while increasing its firepower. He was promoted to Brigadier General in 1999 and eventually appointed to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Several years later he was chosen by the president to be Chairman of the Joint Chiefs.
Twenty minutes after being informed of the terrorists, the general had shaved, showered and was in full uniform when his driver pulled up to the home. The thirty-mile trip to the Pentagon was made in eighteen minutes. General Knight was on his smart phone the entire time.
8:40 A.M.: The hastily called meeting of the Joint Chiefs included members of the general’s staff along with CIA, FBI and NSA representatives. Some of the representatives hadn’t
showered or shaved in an attempt to get to the meeting on time. Stragglers were still coming in twenty minutes after the meeting had started. Copies of the terrorist demand note were in the hands of all attending.
General Knight was infuriated. “Who are these terrorists and how did so many of them slip into the country? How did they overtake supposedly heavily guarded nuclear facilities? What other facilities could be under siege yet to be identified? What kind of armament could they have to hit a Blackhawk helicopter at a half-mile distance? Did they have shoulder-mounted surface-to-air missiles?” The general kept peppering the attendees with questions that no one could answer.
General Knight hammered on the table with his fist. “Who the hell is responsible for such blatant incompetence?” Looking directly at the CIA, FBI and NSA representatives he went into another tirade. “It’s your agencies’ duty to intercept and stop terrorists and you’ve failed the American people again.”
Turning to his attaché the general said, “Have Homeland Security issue a nationwide Red Alert. We’re placing all armed forces at DEFCON 3. Contact Langley Air Force Base to scramble a U-2S to photograph both nuclear reactor sites. I want security at every electrical generating plant in the country verified immediately.”
“Yes, Sir,” replied the aide as he scrambled to comply with the general’s orders.
The U-2S, a high-altitude reconnaissance and surveillance aircraft, is equipped with a photoreconnaissance system that can take pictures in visible or infrared light up to seventy thousand feet. It was seven hundred miles from Langley to the Florida Ridge nuclear reactor site and flying at a maximum speed of five hundred twenty-eight miles per hour, it would take the craft just over one hour twenty minutes to reach the first site. Still, it would be faster than any satellite surveillance, which could take up to two days to get into position. All the personnel at the Joint Chiefs were anxious for those first photos.
The Third Cell Page 37