The Wolf of Los Angeles.

Chapter 600: An African Version of Political and Business Collusion
The headquarters of the African Union in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.

Hawke stood with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Emery, applauding along with the crowd.

Among the many Black people, they stood out somewhat.

At the front of the press room, Pierce Madden, representing the West Coast Charitable Foundation, Krish, representing the Clean Water Foundation, Glendale, representing the United Nations Environment Programme, and Antoine, representing the African Union, jointly signed the African Water Optimization Project Agreement.

Even though the African Union is often called the weakest international organization in terms of global influence, its influence in Africa cannot be ignored.

Over the next decade, the African Union and the United Nations Environment Programme will raise a total of $126 billion to improve water resources in Africa.

The West Coast Charitable Foundation and the Clean Water Project Foundation have officially become partners in this initiative.

Claire smiled broadly, clapped her hands afterward, and shook hands with Hawke, saying, "I hope our cooperation can continue for a long time."

Hawke smiled and said, "Africa is a vast country with great potential."

This time, it would have been impossible to secure this business without bringing in First Lady Claire.

After the signing ceremony, the African Union hosted a reception on the third floor.

Antoine specifically sought out Hawke to toast him, saying, "Your foundation's contributions to greening Africa are evident to all Africans; you are a good friend of Africans."

Hawke spouted nonsense with a straight face: "I am willing to contribute to improving the situation in Africa."

Although he did a lot of work behind the scenes through the Green Africa project, and in his view, the project itself was progressing very slowly, in the eyes of the laid-back Africans, the trees and sand-fixing plants that survived on the edge of the desert and Gobi were already a major achievement.

Moreover, Hurricane Security has repeatedly protected AU personnel, vehicles, and assets, successfully evacuating them from conflict zones.

The success of these programs in Africa is undoubtedly due in no small part to the traditional skill of large American corporations—political-business collusion.

Antoine added, "Mrs. Claire Emmer's involvement will further promote Africa."

Hawke readily agreed: "After she returns to America, she will launch a fundraising campaign and contact the nation's top water conservancy experts to develop the most reasonable recommendations specifically tailored to the actual conditions in Africa."

After all, the United States is the world's leading superpower, and the title of "expert" is still very useful. Antoine said with a smile, "The African Union looks forward to their arrival."

Leonardo was then invited to the front of the stage.

This Hollywood star, who champions environmental protection, delivered a speech on protecting Africa's natural environment.

In subsequent reports by Western media, both the water resource plan and the greening of Africa plan were naturally positive news, without any ridiculous remarks such as abusing the desert.

After the reception, Claire was to travel to Baghdad on behalf of Tom Emer to express her appreciation to the American troops stationed there.

Leonardo quickly boarded Hawke's business jet and returned to North America with him.

He breathed a sigh of relief on the plane and said, "Every time the First Lady's eyes fall on me, my tongue feels extremely uncomfortable, and I can't help feeling nauseous and disgusted."

Hawke fastened his seatbelt and said, "You might have First Lady stress syndrome. Go back and see a psychologist."

Leonardo took it very seriously: "I will stay away from all first ladies from now on, they are too terrible."

Before the plane took off, Hawke received a personal invitation call from President Dong.

The Dong Group and India's Loda Group will hold a joint press conference at the Dong Building in Manhattan, New York, to officially announce their cooperation and unveil the preliminary design plans for One World Tower in Mumbai.

Hawke said, "Both sides are very anxious."

Leonardo speculated, "Perhaps they invested too much and are eager to promote themselves and recoup their investment quickly."

Edward chimed in, "Could they try to sell it to us? I saw online that the upper floors of this building are designed as high-end residences."

“Let’s go and see Mr. Dong’s grand event. We’ll go to New York first.” Hawke looked at Leonardo and said, “No matter how good they sound, be careful when buying a residence in this building.”

Leonard listened to Hawke's words and replied, "I'll tell them they need to think about it carefully."

Not only Hawke, but many prominent figures in North American political and business circles have received invitations from Mr. Dong.

Musk and James Murdoch privately messaged Hawke via Twitter, saying they received a call from Mr. Dong himself.

Hawke didn't say much. Nowadays, India is highly praised in mainstream American public opinion, and is known as the strongest country outside of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.

…………

Syria borders Iraq and Jordan, located in the mountainous region of Abu Qayy.

Every day, a few people cross the border and enter an inconspicuous mountain village.

They were broken up and assigned to various squads, where they began to receive the most basic military training.

These Arab men all carried the burden of deep-seated blood feuds.

Physical exhaustion and pain are nothing compared to the fact that if they could take down a few squid or American soldiers at once, even if it meant taking them down with them while carrying bombs, many of them wouldn't hesitate.

When they still have family, especially parents and children, they will be afraid of death.

When their entire family was killed in the attacks by those two, they had lost all fear.

“These people live for only one purpose.” The scarred man wearing a turban said to the person next to him, “When their loved ones die in front of them, all they want is revenge, all they want is to kill their enemies.”

Julani grew a thick beard, and his once plump face had become much thinner after nearly a year of ups and downs. At this time, he used the alias Walid, his most trusted subordinate, to recruit soldiers again.

The scarred man continued, "Their anger is like a powder keg. Once the training has yielded certain results, we need to plan an operation to unleash that anger."

Zhu Lani, who is very experienced in this area, said: "The 70-day basic military training is essential; otherwise, they are just a pack of toothless hyenas."

The scarred man added, "This can be divided into two parts. Among the people we recruit, some have received military training, and some have faced off against the US military, Iraqi forces, and squid."

Zhu Lani nodded slightly, then turned to the middle-aged man with glasses beside him and asked, "With more and more people, the logistical pressure will be immense. You need to solve the food problem."

The bespectacled man said, "General..."

"Call me Colonel." Jurani emphasized again: "I am the former Walid Colonel of Shamdu, don't forget."

The middle-aged man with glasses assured him, "Yes!" He continued, "I have established a relatively stable cooperative relationship with commercial alliances in cities such as Shevelod and Shekhba, and they can provide enough food and daily necessities."

This wasn't Zhu Lani's first time leading an armed group, and he knew the crux of the problem: "How long can our funds last?" The middle-aged man with glasses replied, "At the current number, we can last for six months. Once the number exceeds a thousand, it will last for three months at most."

Although it wasn't urgent, Julani still frowned upon hearing this.

If you want to assemble an armed force, you can't lack money.

Hatred can incite people to die without hesitation, but to make death worthwhile, you need weapons that can be bought with money.

With her hands behind her back, Zhu Lani thought of the middleman who had recently come.

He had taken this step before, somewhat reluctantly, but the difficulties and realities were right in front of him; it was impossible to support an army with just his personal savings.

Zhu Lani hardened her heart. If she could take Xila Li's money and do nothing, she could do the same if she took the other party's money and did nothing.

And you also need to see what the other party is going to do.

Zhu Lani asked, "Is that person still waiting?"

The scarred man quickly replied, "I've been here for four days and haven't left. I've been waiting in a house on the outskirts of the village. I'm very patient."

Zhu Lani walked down from the high place: "Bring him here."

The group descended the hillside and entered a nearby cave.

The cave is located at the bottom of the rocky mountain and is semi-natural. During ancient wars, it was repaired by various forces. In modern times, it was also built into a secret base by guerrillas. It can definitely be called a very solid and permanent fortification.

Marmush followed Scarface into the cave, where, in the dim light of the bulbs, he saw an unusually thin, bearded man.

Judging from the others' demeanor, this man was clearly a leader. He bowed respectfully and said, "My name is Marmush, a merchant from Mosul. I frequently travel between the Syrian and Israeli borders and have previously introduced many fighters to the Sharm d'Urban organization."

Julani remembered this man; he had a good reputation in northwestern Iraq. He simply said, "I am Colonel Walid. If you have anything to say, you can tell me directly."

Someone brought over a chair, and Julani gestured for him to sit down.

Marmush said, "This time I came here to help several fighters find the resistance organization they had been searching for."

To ensure the success of this deal and to secure a high commission, he brought along several soldiers who were all people who hated Americans to the core.

Scarface nodded: "I know two of them; they've killed quite a few Americans."

Marmush continued, "There's one more thing I need to relay to the colonel: there are forces outside of Iraq looking for proxies in the Middle East, and they'll provide funding and weapons support..."

Zhu Lani ignored the money and asked first, "Who are they?"

"The enemy of the United States and Israel." Malmush didn't hesitate at all, saying what he knew: "I don't know their specific identities or where they come from, and I dare not ask them randomly, but one thing they can guarantee is that they will fund and support your military forces, and in the future they will only have one type of request: to launch attacks against the US military!"

Julani asked, "Is it only targeting the US military?"

Malmush emphasized, "Yes, if it's a target other than the US military, you can absolutely refuse."

Julani asked in surprise, "Do these rich people have such a deep hatred for Americans?"

“I don’t know any more details.” Malmush could only guess: “I’ve heard rumors that during the Gulf War, hundreds of thousands of Iraqis paid the price with their lives. Later, the US sanctions against Iraq led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children. During this period, a large number of Iraqis fled overseas. Some of them not only made money, but made a lot of money. However, they have never forgotten their hatred for the Americans who destroyed their homeland.”

Julani didn't believe even 20% of these unreliable rumors, and no one could guarantee that there wasn't another Sillali hiding behind them.

It's not surprising at all that Americans are fighting against each other, just like the extremely fierce internal struggles in Iraq.

There are all sorts of local armed groups, the American-backed Baghdad government, Kurdish militias, and so on—the list goes on and on.

Jullani dared to recruit more soldiers again because, on the one hand, he was unwilling to remain unknown and wanted the Americans to pay the price; on the other hand, he knew that once the Americans launched their counter-terrorism operations, all sorts of armed groups targeting Americans would spring up like a dense swarm of grass after a spring rain.

The more we fight against it, the more fear arises; this has never been an empty saying.

Zhu Lani added, "You know the rules. Find a suitable place, and I will send someone to meet and talk to them."

Marmush quickly replied, "Reputation is the guarantee of our line of work. My family lives in Mosul, and I would never say anything carelessly."

Jullani cautioned, "All of this is predicated on the premise that any demands they make are directed at Americans and must be within my capabilities."

“I will give feedback.” Marmush felt that he had a good chance of getting the brokerage fee, and said, “After we finish our talks today, I will immediately return to Mosul and contact them.”

Zhu Lani waved his hand: "You can go now."

Marmush immediately got up and followed the scarred man out of the cave.

Zhu Lani, accompanied by several trusted bodyguards, walked deeper into the cave. They exited the rocky mountain through a secret passage at the other end and went to a nearby secluded residence.

He lost several wives, and then found several more.

These women all need to undergo military training so that they can step up and act as female soldiers in critical moments.

On this land that was wantonly manipulated by Westerners, the number of women whose families died under the Westerners' war was even greater than that of men.

Marmush obediently followed Scarface out of the village.

A group of soldiers who were doing physical training ran past not far away.

One of the ordinary-looking Arab men quickly glanced at Marmosh.

He thought of the photos he had seen at the secret base in Damakin.

This must be the middleman who was subtly influenced by the company.

But he didn't look at it much, nor did he need to send any messages. His next task was very simple: to do what was appropriate for his identity.

This identity was prepared by the company over several years: a Pearl Party fighter who had fought squid several times in southern Lebanon.

He possesses excellent military skills, has participated in real wars, and has a tenacious fighting spirit.

Next, he needs to quickly gain a certain position within the newly established Aksa militia, which is severely lacking in key personnel.

(End of this chapter)