by Jack Leman
The second line started blinking. He had to cut short.
“Avraham, thanks for the heads up. I will keep you informed.”
The jealousy and the reluctance to share information was the eternal problem of all intelligence agencies.
He ended the call and pressed the blinking button of his phone.
“Yes Clarit,”
“Sir, sorry to interrupt, but I have Oded Haim on the line and he says it’s urgent.”
“Ok, put him on.”
“Hi Oded.”
“Sir, we just got a message from IAIG. The UAV detected Syrian troops arriving in the industrial zone. They are taking position around the warehouse, but they have not discovered the Hezbollah troops, or our boys yet.”
Another complication, thought Tamir, time was getting short.
“Tell the boys there to keep a low profile and avoid contact with the Syrians and Hezbollah. We need regular reports on the developments there.”
“Sir, what shall we do with the Duvdevan team on its way to Al-Kisweh?”
“Ask them to position themselves in the area in the warehouse’s west, facing the Sayeret team, from where they can flank the Syrians. Make sure they contact the Sayeret Maglan and cover each other from the enemy. Tell both groups not to forget to turn on their transponders.”
When the transponders were on, the commandant of the team could visualize the position of friendly units on his mobile phone. The F-16 on patrol and the UAV flying over them could see the same image and could distinguish friendly troops from their opponents. At the operations control center in Tel Aviv, they had an actual image of the battlespace.
“… and get me General Amit Ahav on the phone…”
It didn’t take long to go through.
“Amit, this is Tamir. What exactly did the UAV see?”
“We got information that a platoon of troops arrived in the industrial zone in a Syrian Special Forces truck and are taking positions between the Hezbollah guys and our boys.”
37-Friday 8:45 pm
Al-Kisweh
They had received the heads-up from headquarters. A platoon size force of soldiers was entering the industrial zone and was advancing towards their positions. Tal ordered Zadok to pose a wire trip at the stairs leading to their floor. From their vantage point on the second floor of the building, he and Doron observed with their binoculars the advancing troops. It would be dark soon, and the soldiers had to settle before the sun set. They saw a squad of scouts advancing noiselessly, as if they were making special efforts not to draw the attention of the Hezbollah troops. They stopped and checked in the direction of Hezbollah, and advances cautiously as they received no reaction. The scouts entered the carcass of a building to the west of Tal’s hiding place. With their binoculars, they could see them go up to the second floor to check if they had a good view of the hiding Hezbollah troops. They went out of the building and checked for hiding places among the rubble. They were approaching their building. Tal ordered Zadok and Doron to pack their kit, and to have their weapons ready for a hand-to-hand fight. If they could stop the scouts at the staircase, they had a chance to escape before the others could come to their rescue. They had to hit them fast and avoid a battle to clear their way out. They would have a chance of avoiding a battle if the troops moved and settle before darkness fell.
“HQ, Maglan One,”
“Go ahead, Maglan,”
“Scouts approaching our building. If they try to come to our floor, we will have to take them out and disappear before the others come. We will proceed to our exfiltration point, have the helicopters ready.”
“Ok Maglan, we are sending out the rescue helicopters, keep us informed.”
“Once you pack your gear, Zadok, you take the stairs. Doron and I will take the scouts remaining outside the building, if we can see them.”
Tal continued watching the progress of the scouts. They were now hiding behind the growing shadows that announced the sunset. The scouts stopped, and their leader talked on the radio. He looked towards Tal’s building, then around him, and hurried his men to it settle in hiding places just under the building.
Tal, Doron and Zadok took a deep breath and continued watching as the first soldiers following the scouts appeared. They were also making efforts not to draw the attention of the Hezbollah troops. A squad went into a building to their west and took position on the second floor, on the same level as them. The remaining three squads took place behind the Hezbollah troops and settled for the night.
“HQ, Maglan One.”
“Go ahead, Maglan.”
“A squad settled in a building on our west, three squads settled between us and the Hezbollah militiamen. The soldiers are regulars of the Syrian Army.”
“Maglan, we will mark their positions in five minutes, and you will see them on your screens. Confirm the number of soldiers in the building.”
After Tal checked one last time, and confirmed to headquarter the numbers of soldiers who had taken position in the building, he waited for the confirmation of what they had seen to appear on his screen.
Tal looked around; he could see the entrance of the basement and the backside of soldiers fanned out facing it: they had chosen a great observation post.
38- Friday 9:00 pm
Knesset
Jerusalem
It was his last round today. After that, he would have to feed Dolly, and then he could have his eight hours of rest, and get rid of the constant chatter of his female colleagues. He had been stuck with them for three days and nights.
This morning, their assignment had been to drive away tourists who wanted to visit the Knesset. The women took it as an advance course in English. They talked to the tourists to improve their language skills.
Today, the Knesset was closed for preparations for the big swearing-in ceremony on Sunday. Big delivery vans had brought the cocktail tables, buffet tables, cases of glasses, dishes and the cutlery. Avitan hoped they would post him as far away as possible from the main entrance of the Knesset building, because there, he would have to stand at attention and salute bigwigs, if he recognized any.
While Dolly pulled relentlessly on her leash, he turned left and arrived at the eastern wall of the Knesset. He stopped to take in the view of Jerusalem. Despite the dark, a glow seemed to float on the city. He loved the energy that emanated from Jerusalem. This city, which was the cradle of the three monotheist religions, was now ground zero for a conflict which took the entire world to heart. Peaceful days were hard to think of.
He looked at the girls walking ahead, oblivious to his halt, and he decided to have a cigarette. While he watched the color show in the sky above the holy city, he sat on the marble floor and rested against the wall. During his few days of duty, he had learned the ins and outs of the building. Now he was sitting probably just above the underground parking lot reserved for the members of the Knesset.
Just behind the wall on his back was the podium of the plenum hall, where the President of the Assembly sat, and politicians delivered their speeches. It was the center of attention of the Knesset; all eyes were focused on the speaker. In front of the podium was a horseshoe-shaped block of seats reserved for government members and used by the top civil servants of the Israeli bureaucracy during swearing-in ceremonies. Behind the horseshoe, four rows of desks and brown leather seats reserved for the 120 members of the Knesset formed a Menorah, the seven-branched candelabra and the coat of arms of the modern state of Israel. During the ceremonial assemblies, they kept the seats on the balconies for the VIPs of Israel, and for the ambassadors of friendly countries.
Avitan looked up to the ceiling of the colonnade, checked left and right, and wondered what the tourists they had caught yesterday could have found so interesting to take a picture.
Chapter 5 - Saturday
39-Saturday 10:30 am
Israel Air Intelligence Group (IAIG) HQ,
Tel Aviv
Naama sat at her desk and looked at her screens before e
ven looking around and greeting her colleagues. There were no apparent developments since last night; the UAV still flew on auto-pilot in circles above Al-Kisweh; the cameras and the sensors were still locked on the basement; the soldiers facing the entrance remained entrenched in their positions. She finally glanced to her left and curtly wished good-morning to the lonely pilot on duty. The others were probably sipping their coffee in the resting lounge next door, but would rush to the cockpit in 10 seconds if they were needed.
UAVs were usually operational for 24 hours a day, 20 hours of surveillance flight and a margin of 4 hours to get into position and to return to the airbase. It took three shifts to cover the total duration.
She had a friendly thought for the six Israeli boys somewhere near Damascus, hiding in the rubble, and to make sure nothing had changed during her absence, she checked the places of the little colored dots on the screen. A red rectangle marked the place of the basement; about 200 meters from the entrance of the basement and facing it in a semi-circle, in two groups of three, and one of four men, ten yellow triangles signaled the positions of the Hezbollah militiamen. About 200 meters behind the Hezbollah, in a semi-circle facing the entrance of the basement, 24 Syrian soldiers in four squads of six men each were entrenched behind the rubble. Just behind them, six others were hiding in the building, a total of 30 blue triangles denoted the positions of the Syrian soldiers. 200 meters at the southeast of the Syrians, three light blue circles represented the Sayeret Maglan boys. The three pink circles represented the Duvdevan team who faced all these troops. They were hiding just behind and to the left of the basement. They covered the Hezbollah militiamen and the left flank of the Syrians, blocking the retreat of the Syrians towards their vehicles and preventing any help that could come from the highway from reaching them. Some 700 meters separated the Duvdevan from the Maglan team and they could not see each other. The setting was like a theater; the scene was the basement, Hezbollah and the Syrians were the spectator facing the scene, the Maglan team occupied the balcony, and the Duvdevan team was just behind the scene. Forty triangles plus an unknown number of enemy fighters in the basement against six friendly circles; if they had to fight, the odds were largely against the circles.
That was the normal way of Sayeret Maglan interventions: a little group against a small army. Once, when she had the occasion to ask a Maglan team member about the impression of being out-manned in enemy territory, the commando had replied that they considered themselves being in full control of the situation. Despite being so few, they felt confident they would always have the upper hand. She had found him cocky; but that was probably the mind-set required to take part in the Sayeret Maglan teams. He confessed they relied heavily on the data-flow from the UAVs and her analysis from aerial images. That was exactly what she wanted to hear, and she felt gratified by the realization that her job was essential for their safety.
A few streets north of these armed men, kids played in the dusty lanes, oblivious to the volatile tension just a few meters away. None of them ventured beyond their street, taking seriously the threats received from their parents. But Naama saw that their play ground was still within the range of an explosion in the basement. If they destroyed the missile while it was still hiding, the shaky dwellings would suffer heavily from the blast and their collapse would probably trap a multitude of women, elderly people and children in the rubble.
Naama looked at her watch; it was 12.05 pm. She gathered her files and looked at the entrance to see if her replacement was coming. She wanted to be in Kibbutz Anavim before 2 pm to have enough time with her grandmother. She had to cancel her visit last Saturday, and it weighed heavily on her conscience. She went through her shopping list and saw that she had forgotten to buy the chocolates her grandmother loved. She wasn’t sure if it was good for her health, but it gave her so much pleasure, and she wanted badly to please her. There was not much she could do for her otherwise.
40-Saturday 12.30 pm
Netanya,
Israel
Ridwan looked at Nashwa with fondness. She was driving the Mercedes with such a pleasure that he felt a pang of guilt. She had immediately adapted to the big car as if she had driven a Mercedes all her life. They were going west, to Netanya, towards the posh buildings and shopping malls. He had reserved a table for two at a fish restaurant by the beach. She looked gorgeous in her new dress, but what was most striking was the huge smile on her face.
Everything was going her way, a nice car, an exceptional lover, tomorrow the swearing in ceremony, and then the life of a member of the Knesset. For an Arab-Israeli woman, it was quite an achievement. The Arab communities in Israel had been divided on many issues, one of the major ones being the position of women in society. That had been the major obstacle preventing the Arab parties from forming a coalition. This time, thanks to the coalition, they got 15 members elected, making them essential to form a government. It was not the first time that Arabs got ministerial jobs, but this time it was a first because it would be an Arab woman who would be part of the new government. This coming Sunday, Nashwa would be sworn in as Minister for Social Equality. Not a primary ministry, but still, having an Arab woman sitting at the same table as the other 25 ministers was a matter of pride for all the Arab communities of Israel. On Sunday evening, the Balad party, to which she belonged, and the Mayor of Tayibe organized a welcome party to celebrate their new minister. His friends in the party had asked Ridwan to make a speech at the venue, but he had gently refused, insisting to remain behind the scene. He had offered to provide for the catering, and that had closed the subject.
The streets of Netanya were busy with families enjoying their Saturday outing. Kids were playing on the sidewalks while their parents stood looking at them admiringly. They passed the Ir Yamim shopping mall and followed Sderot Ben Gurion Avenue towards the beaches. At the roundabout, she took a left turn and entered the first parking lot she saw. Ridwan held himself from giving her unsolicited advice about how to park, but she maneuvered the big car expertly. When they were parked, she turned off the engine, turned to Ridwan and with an amorous smile on her face said:
“Thank you, Ridwan… I am very lucky to have you…”
Ridwan gave her a big smile, but could not find any words to say. He felt ashamed.
41-Saturday 2:14 pm
Kibbutz Anavim
Between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem
Naama walked in the living room of the Elder’s Home of the kibbutz. The vast room was filled with the elderly residents and their visitors. In one corner a group of white-haired people were oblivious to the noise and continued their card games undisturbed; in another place, small children bored by the visit of their grandparents ran around the room in quest of a distraction; to make themselves heard; the visitors spoke loudly, and it added to the high level of noise in the room.
She walked past the families and looked around for her grandmother. She saw her sitting on her own by a window. She had an empty seat by her; she was waiting for her.
“Hello, Nomi.” She said cheerfully.
Her grandmother’s face was lit with happiness and her toothless mouth made a big O. She gave a big hug to Naama and pointed to the empty chair.
“I had to repel repeated attempts to steal the chair!”
Since the two weeks she had not seen her, she found she had aged. Her face was thinner, and her dress seemed larger, but her eyes were smiling.
“I brought you some chocolates.”
“Don’t show them around now, otherwise the others will pester me to have some. Later on, you come to my room and I will tell you where to hide them. You are a love to think of me.”
Naama went to get two cups of tea from the buffet, and when she came back she saw the expression on Nomi’s face; she knew there was something on her mind and that she would not rest until she said it.
“Naama, I am now at an age where I feel I am getting more fragile every passing day. My friends are leaving me one after the other. I don’t know how
many times I will see you again. So, I think time has come to tell you some little secrets about our family, unless you know them already.”
“Tell me.” Answered Naama, always interested in family gossip.
“It was your grandfather Rami who had told me this story, and I had to promise him I will tell it only to you, but as late as possible. Now I think it’s time.”
Naama was all ears and wondered if there were still some secrets about the family she had not heard about.
“Your grandfather’s real father was not Farid Muallimi, as you have always been told, but a Jewish man…”
“What are you telling me?”
“… and a man you know.”
“What?”
Relieved of having her secret out, Nomi stopped and looked at this girl, or woman now, that she cherished as much as her own daughter; she looked so much like her mother.
“Your great-grandmother Aisha, Rami’s mother, was a powerful woman, not really beautiful, but with a lot of charm. When her father, I think his name was Abd el-Hamid Abu Ghosh, the Mukhtar of Abu Ghosh, decided to marry her, she was having a secret affair with this Jewish man. It was a big taboo at the time and if the affair was discovered, there would surely be a blood feud; she risked her own life for this man. Her future husband’s name was Farid Muallimi. She didn’t want to marry the man, but she had to obey her father, so with a broken heart she ended her secret relation, and concentrated on her marriage. Once married, they had difficulties to conceive children. Her husband was an active militant with the Nationalist Palestinian Party who wanted the British and the Jews out of Palestine, and his frequent absences did not help. After a year of marriage, her father and her husband asked her if she was infertile, in which case Farid would divorce her. She was sure the problem was with her husband, and in despair she got in touch with her old lover. However, he was married at this time, but he still had Aisha in his heart. As a result, she was soon pregnant and gave birth to twin sons, to the satisfaction of her father and husband who was confirmed as an alfa-male; your grandfather Rami, and his brother Tawfiq were born.”
