Middle Eastern tyrants

Chapter 243 Piercing (Part 4)

Tel Aviv, the Prime Minister's official residence.

Mossad Director Yitzhak Khofi gently closed the oak door to the Prime Minister's office and turned to face Chief of Staff Lazars and General Yeshavishen, who were waiting in the corridor.

"The Prime Minister just took his medication and went to sleep," Director Hofi said in a low voice. "His condition is stable for now."

Lazars and Yesavishen exchanged a glance, their tense shoulders relaxing slightly.

Just half an hour earlier, after learning of the complete collapse of the Haifa defenses, Prime Minister Hilbert suddenly fainted during a war council meeting.

This strongman, who had stood firm in Zion's political arena for two decades, finally succumbed to a series of blows—betrayal by his son-in-law, who was the Minister of Defense; economic collapse caused by the Arab oil embargo; capture of the Air Force Commander; the fall of the most important air force base; and now even Haifa, the most important city in the north, is in imminent danger.

"The doctor said it was a fainting spell caused by acute hypertension."

"But the Prime Minister has been relying on medication for a long time, and his heart condition is not ideal. If he has another attack, the consequences are unpredictable," Hofi added, his voice unusually heavy.

Lazars asked, "Does the Prime Minister have anyone with him right now?"

“His daughter is with him,” Director Hoffer said, “as well as his grandson and granddaughter.”

The three walked silently toward the headquarters.

Upon entering the command room, Yeshavishen broke the silence first: "Director Hofi, you've done a great job this time. The fact that the Magans have blocked the Strait of Hormuz, causing Ant to begin vying with the United States for control of the Arab coalition, is our only piece of good news recently."

Hofi nodded slightly. The secret plans that Mossad had been laying in various parts of the Middle East for twenty years were finally beginning to pay off.

"Opening up a third front is indeed a brilliant move."

Lazars continued, "As long as Magan continues to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, the United States will have no choice but to intervene. As for Surria changing commanders at the last minute..."

He sneered, "Throughout history, changing generals in the midst of battle has always been a major taboo in military strategy, and this is no exception even if the enemy is an Ant.

Yeshavishin walked to the battle map: "Currently, Eitan's Sixth Army is executing a tactic of luring the enemy deep into their territory. They are feigning a return to Haifa to reinforce, but in reality, they have two elite divisions lying in ambush in the Megiddo Valley. Once the enemy's flank is exposed..."

Suddenly, the command post door was pushed open, and a man wearing a distinctive combat uniform and carrying the rank of colonel walked in.

He wore a reddish-brown beret, and his attire clearly indicated that he was from the General Staff Reconnaissance Team.

“Colonel Curtus,” Hoffi nodded in greeting.

The man's name was Alex Curtus, and he was the commander of the General Staff reconnaissance team.

The General Staff Reconnaissance Team is under the Ministry of Defense, and its nominal supreme commander is the Chief of the General Staff—namely Lazars—but in reality, it reports directly to the Prime Minister.

Curtus first bowed respectfully to General Yesavishen and his superior Lazars, then got straight to the point: "During the Prime Minister's recovery, I will be responsible for recording your operational decisions and then relaying them to the Prime Minister."

General Yesavishin: "Ask me whatever your questions are."

Colonel Curtus pulled out a notebook and asked bluntly, "I'd like to know what measures Command is currently planning to take to reverse Haifa's decline?"

Yesavishin responded: "First of all, it must be clear that we will never give up Haifa under any circumstances. I have decided to immediately mobilize the 99th Reserve Division and combine it with the 7th Armored Brigade transferred from the Golan Heights to form a task force, which will be deployed to the Haifa battlefield within three days."

Curtus was taking notes rapidly, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.

"At the same time, I also learned some tactics from our enemies."

Yeshavishin continued, "Whether it was the attack on Quneitra last year or the surprise attack on Haifa this year, that Amir seems to have a habit of using public opinion or feints to distract us and thus conceal his true purpose for attacking. This time, I have decided to use his own methods against him."

Currently, the 7th Army under Ger's command is in the Galilee region defending against an attack from the Golan Heights. I plan to order it to launch a feint attack on Quneitra, while the main force will take the opportunity to fully exploit the flank of Surria and try to annihilate one of their divisions.

"Excuse my bluntness," Curtus raised his head, "but it would be beneath our dignity to imitate the tactics of our enemies, and neither the Prime Minister nor the party members of parliament would like that answer."

“Then what good ideas do you have? Feel free to speak them out,” Lazars said coldly.

Curtus was speechless for a moment.

"Tactics are not a matter of 'like' or 'dislike,' but rather 'useful' or 'unuseful.'"

Yesavishen said solemnly, "There is nothing shameful about learning from the enemy. On the battlefield, the only shameful thing is defeat."

If learning from the enemy leads to victory, then it is the wisest choice.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

The collapse of the Zion Line was not a sudden avalanche, but a gradual process.

The Fifth Army had originally deployed flexible defensive positions outside Haifa, including numerous anti-tank ditches, mines, and decoy positions. This layout was effective against the deep penetration tactics favored by the Arabs, and could inflict heavy losses on the vanguard armored units.

However, Lu Lin demonstrated to the Zionists an offensive plan that was extremely effective against flexible deployments.

That is, after Zion lost air superiority and massive logistical support capabilities, it directed artillery to carry out a comprehensive artillery bombardment of the marked enemy defensive positions.

The idea behind this tactical theory is not to seek a traditional linear breakthrough, but to cause the enemy's "systemic paralysis" and make the battlefield situation "one-sidedly transparent" to one's own side.

Under the intense and precise firepower, every Zion defense node felt like it was fighting alone, unable to receive support from neighboring units or understand the overall battle situation. Fear and isolation were more destructive to a unit's will than artillery shells.

Soon, the remaining Zion forces were forced to abandon their outer positions and retreat into the city of Haifa.

"Viper units, take note: 'Operation Cleanup'. Conduct reconnaissance along the designated sectors, marking all defensive nodes and firing positions. Priority access; destroy upon discovery. Call in artillery fire for stubborn targets."

With clear instructions given, more than ten Cobras immediately dispersed, their propellers roaring, and remained hovering over Haifa.

Haifa is not as large as Damascus. Its low white houses are densely packed on the hillside like a flock of sheep, interspersed with the spires of a few churches and government buildings, which can be seen in their entirety from a helicopter.

Meanwhile, ground assault troops also began pouring into the city.

M113 armored vehicles and M60A1 main battle tanks, equipped with frontal shields, advanced rapidly along the main road.

They abandoned the cautious approach of traditional infantry warfare and rapidly infiltrated and divided the city.

When encountering sporadic enemy fire, they did not stop, but used the heavy machine gun on the roof of the vehicle to continuously suppress the windows of the buildings and alleyways on both sides, quickly opening a breach in the city.

The infantry squad that followed skillfully used the mobile cover provided by the armored vehicles to clear the buildings on both sides.

This three-dimensional and agile combat method has already taken the initial shape of modern urban warfare, and has basically broken away from the war of attrition mode of fighting house by house and suffering heavy casualties.

To be honest, this tactic caught the Zion soldiers in the city a bit off guard.

They thought they were about to face a brutal meat grinder battle—a back-and-forth struggle and fighting along a clear battle line around a certain street or a certain building.

But now, gunshots and engine noises are coming from all directions.

For the first time, they were lost in their familiar city, like headless flies.

"We encountered enemy armored vehicles on Central Avenue, and they are advancing towards the City Hall!"

"The industrial zone in the west of the city has made contact with enemy infantry. The enemy only has one platoon and is equipped with heavy firepower. Requesting support!"

"."

In the east of the city, behind a makeshift fortified barricade, Private David of Zion was trying to make sense of the chaotic situation. He couldn't understand why there were Arabs in the city a few kilometers behind him.

Before he could recover from the shock, an even deeper, more muffled sound, like distant thunder, faintly came from behind.

Although separated by several blocks, the slight tremor from the ground beneath my feet carried an ominous premonition.

The next second, a series of sharp, piercing whistling sounds, as if tearing fabric, came from the air.

David's expression changed: "Fire! Take cover—!"

Before he could finish speaking, a shell landed at an intersection behind the barricade where David was located.

He watched helplessly as the asphalt pavement in the middle of the street was suddenly arched upwards as if by an invisible giant hand, and then scorching flames mixed with black smoke and countless broken stones and bricks formed a destructive shock wave that spread wildly in all directions.

From an aerial perspective, Shuangzhi's first round of precise artillery fire had already arrived.

The Zion defense positions, marked as fortified strongholds, crumbled amidst towering flames and thick smoke. Buildings collapsed with deafening roars, turning into burning ruins.

This marks the first time that Arab armies have launched a massive offensive in a city in Zion.

Gazing at the billowing black smoke rising from the city in the distance, Taimi sighed, "What a pity, I wanted to see the whole city."

Bandar: "It's okay, maybe this is the original style of their architecture."

"What do you mean?"

"Just like the stained-glass windows of their church."

Bandar thought for a moment: "Don't you think there's a kind of broken beauty in it?"

(End of this chapter)