Middle Eastern tyrants

Chapter 163 The Village of Taylorfield

When Commander Shmuel learned that the Yarmouk Valley had been lost, he slammed his fist on the table: "Damn it, we were fooled by that Amir!"

He originally thought the other side's target was Tel Aviv, but he didn't expect them to be aiming at the Yarmouk Valley.

This left the Golan Heights to the north wide open, forcing Quneitra to defend passively, creating a breach in their seemingly impregnable defense.

Impregnable, Bar-Lev
Damn it, Commander Shmuel's face was as long as a donkey's; I never thought my previous guess would actually come true.

However, he was no longer concerned about his reputation. After contacting headquarters and receiving a severe scolding, Shmuel immediately ordered: "Send all four brigades of the second line of defense, as well as the entire reserve force, to the northern Galilee Plain. We will join forces with Major General Gel's 38th Division there to halt the advance of the Arab coalition!"

Major General Dov asked, "What about the remaining troops?"

Zion has deployed a total of eight brigades in the Hashim Valley, with four mechanized infantry brigades deployed on the first line of defense and the other four deployed in the rear depth. They may also have an additional armored division coming from Jerusalem.

In the first fierce battle against Shuangzhi, the four mechanized infantry brigades on the front line all suffered casualties to varying degrees. The one that suffered the most casualties had less than half of its original structure intact.

Even the 8th Armored Brigade, which was subsequently deployed to fight the fire, suffered a real "severe blow"—not in terms of organizational structure, but in terms of morale.

Commander Shmuel has ordered a change of commander for the 8th Brigade. Although he did not hand over Brigadier General Cohen to the military police out of respect for General Yeshavishin, he did send him to the rear for psychological treatment.

"Push forward! Have all the mobile units on the first line of defense advance at full speed! Launch a proactive assault on the Arab positions!"

Commander Shmuel's orders were clear: "The current front line is on the west bank of the Hashim River, which means that our supply lines are shorter, our troop deployment is faster, and our strength, equipment, and coordination capabilities are far superior to those hastily assembled coalition forces!"

His gaze swept over every officer present, revealing no sign of defeat, only coldness and determination: "We must keep putting pressure on this Arab coalition until they lose their composure and collapse completely!"

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.

On the Galilee Plain in the southern Golan Heights, a vanguard of the Shuangzhi Army is galloping across the steppe.

Zafield Samir was leaning out of the hatch of the M113 armored vehicle, and the damp, warm wind carrying the scent of earth and grass rushed towards him.

As the vanguard of the Shuangzhi, their mission was to clear the way for the main force that followed.

Zafield had previously served as a protector of Major General Amir in Garnam. His entire platoon suffered heavy casualties in the street fighting against Zion forces, but fortunately, the Major General survived.

After the war, Zafield was promoted to second lieutenant for his bravery in combat and is currently the platoon leader of the assault platoon of the 7th Mechanized Infantry Division.

The climate of the Galilee Plain is completely different from that of Al-Ilag, and is closer to the environment of Western Europe than the Middle East.

"Lieutenant, the village of Talfar is just ahead."

The scout sitting in the passenger seat was a local from Hashim, and also a volunteer soldier conscripted before the war. Most of them were full of patriotic fervor and hated the Zionites the most.

Zafield raised his binoculars. The distant village was deathly silent, with only dilapidated houses and abandoned farms visible. A tractor lay overturned on the edge of the village, its paint peeling off in large chunks.

"parking."

Zafield ordered M113 to stop immediately.

He quickly got out of the car and walked to the tire tracks on the grass not far away. He then squatted down to examine them carefully. "The width of these tire tracks isn't that of a farm vehicle, and the ruts they created look more like they were made by a tracked vehicle."

Zafield stood up and looked at the desolate village in the distance. He patted the dirt off his hands and said to Corporal Walid behind him, "I suspect there is an enemy ambush in the village ahead. Send the engineers to check ahead. There might be anti-tank mines. The rest of you, provide cover."

Corporal Walid nodded and immediately yelled, "Guys, come dig up the moles!"

Then a thin private carrying a detector immediately jogged forward, holding a long, thin iron rod, and the detector emitted a rhythmic "buzzing" sound.

“Oh, when will that be?” Corporal Walid muttered under his breath.

“Be patient. Spending a few more hours now might add decades to our lives,” Zafield said.

“I just said it offhand,” Walid said sullenly.

The engineers moved very slowly, almost inching forward compared to driving. If they had those modified tractors, they could have run them over directly—unfortunately, those things were too heavy and couldn't keep up with the pace of their vanguard.

Everyone stood guard with their guns on their hands, watching Gus work as he slowly made his way forward.

"Buzz."

"Buzz."

"."

"Beep beep beep beep!!"

When the detector had scanned about two hundred meters away, it emitted a sharp alarm.

Holy crap, I actually guessed right!
Zafield and all the soldiers were taken aback.

Hey! I found it.

Just as engineer Guss was about to turn around and report to his comrades, a gunshot rang out from afar. Guss's knee was shot through, and blood gushed out from the other side. He fell to the ground, howling in pain, while the detector in his hand continued to sound the alarm.

"Snipers! All hands take cover!"

Zafield shouted and quickly hid behind the armored vehicle, and the other soldiers also lay down.

The sniper on the other side clearly did not kill Guss on purpose. The next few bullets were aimed at the area around Guss, creating craters in the ground. One of the bullets shattered his shoulder.

"These beasts!"

Corporal Walid, seeing his grieving comrade, pulled a towing cable from the rear of the M113, threw it with all his might next to Gus, and shouted, "Grab it! Grab it now!"

Gus gripped the iron hook with all his might, and Walid activated the winch. He heard the sound of a sniper rifle ringing out again in the distance, but he dared not look.

Finally, Gus was dragged back, but the soldier had already become a corpse.

"This is the assault platoon. We have encountered enemy snipers and a minefield south of the village of Tellfar! Requesting long-range fire support to cover Tellfar village! Repeat! Requesting coverage!" Zafield called over the radio.

After shouting, he crawled to the private's side, looked into the man's lifeless eyes, and Zafield said quietly, "Farewell, brother."

The two sides exchanged sporadic fire on the plain. About fifteen minutes later, they heard the sound of shells slicing through the air overhead. The shells landed heavily in the village, and the explosions lasted for a full half hour. Soil, gravel, and smoke rose into the air, and black clouds of smoke shrouded the sky above the village of Talfar.

"Follow me!" As soon as the shelling stopped, Zafield immediately led two squads of soldiers in a skirmish line and quickly advanced towards the village until they stopped behind a wall at the edge of the village.

O God

Corporal Walid's gaze passed over the broken walls and ruins, revealing a scene of utter devastation, akin to hell.

He saw some fresh corpses, probably Zion's garrison here. Some had their upper bodies vanished into thin air, leaving only bloody intestines and two legs on the ground, while others had their bodies blown to pieces and were emitting indistinct groans.

Zafield noticed that there were not only fresh corpses at the scene, but also many remains that were so decomposed that they were unrecognizable as human or were just bones. The cloth under the corpses indicated that they were not soldiers.

“They’ve massacred civilians here!” Corporal Walid couldn’t help but exclaim.

Zafield's eyes remained unwavering as he continued leading his team forward, searching house to house for any lurking enemies.

The further he went, the more alarmed he became. He saw trenches deployed in the village and cave entrances exposed by bombing.

Their fortifications were semi-underground.

Zafield had just sensed something was wrong and was about to order everyone to stop when he saw a figure flash past behind the cover across the smoke.

"Take cover!" he roared.

The next second, bullets rained down. Several soldiers walking on the open road had no time to dodge. Their bodies convulsed from the bullets, and they fell to the ground silently like sacks of grain.

Zafield held the M16A1 and regulated his heart rate by taking deep breaths.

A private next to him placed his rifle at the gap in the ruins and fired a burst, but a precise bullet struck the right center of the soldier's nose. Zafield watched as the soldier's face "disappeared" instantly, blood gushing out of the hole like a fountain. The soldier blinked and then fell backward.

Soldiers from both sides began exchanging fire wildly at a distance of several tens of meters.

The bullets thudded against the broken wall, scattering trails of grayish-white powder.

Zafield heard what sounded like shouts of "Hey Monyam" coming from the other side, followed by Molotov cocktails being thrown at them, hitting them and causing flames to flow around them like water.

Judging from the gunfire, the enemy had at least one platoon, perhaps two.

He wasn't the only one who felt the disparity in troop strength. Corporal Walid crawled to Zafield's side and shouted, "Why aren't they using grenades or any other weapons? They could have just taken us out!"

“Because they want to use us as human shields!” Zafield said. “As long as we’re trapped here, the Allied heavy artillery won’t be able to bombard them!”

Corporal Walid paused for a moment, then asked, "So what should we do now?"

Zafield looked around. His squad was being suppressed by enemy fire and couldn't even raise their heads. The enemy also had cover.

In this situation, unless the M113s behind can be driven up, the M113s have gun shields on the front, and the M2 heavy machine guns on the roof can provide sufficient firepower suppression.

The problem is that anti-tank mines have been planted near the village of Tellfar.

Zafield surveyed the battlefield, his gaze finally settling on the abandoned tractor at the village entrance, and a clear idea emerged in his mind.

"Radio operator!" Zafield said into the walkie-talkie after returning to his bunker, "Notify the engineer platoon in the rear to connect all the towing cables together, one end to the M113's hook and the other end to the chassis beam of that tractor! Quickly!"

"All units! Provide covering fire!"

Zafield ordered all available rifles and machine guns to open fire simultaneously. Various smoke grenades and hand grenades exploded in the narrow streets and trench gaps, shrapnel flying everywhere, mixed with the muffled groans and screams of soldiers.

Soon, the steel cable was secured, the M113's engine roared to life, and the tracks kicked up the slippery grass and mud as it slowly reversed. The steel cable gradually taut, emitting a teeth-grinding creaking sound.

The heavy, rusty tractor was dragged by tremendous force, wobbled at first, and was then yanked out of the mud.

The tractor was then towed by the M113 over the minefield.

"boom!"

The first explosion rang out, and the left wheel of the tractor was blown into the air.

"Boom! Boom!"

Two more muffled bangs followed, and two fireballs and black smoke burst from under the tractor's wheel hub and chassis. However, even though it was reduced to wreckage, it did not affect its weight, which was enough to trigger an anti-tank mine.

And just like that, a passage large enough for the convoy to pass through was brutally carved out.

"Follow the drag marks! Follow me!"

Without hesitation, the driver of the M113 shifted into drive and roared toward the edge of the village, following the path indicated by the wreckage of the tractor. The gunner on the roof operated the M2 heavy machine gun, aiming at the trench opening where the firing point had just been exposed, and began a frenzied, vengeful barrage.

Zafield quickly lay down on the ground.

The 12.7mm bullets, like the lash of death, easily tore through sandbags, bricks, and human bodies. The Zion position, which had been spitting fire just moments before, was instantly riddled with debris, blood, and flesh, and its firepower was abruptly weakened.

"Infantry cover!" Zafield was the first to leap out from behind the cover, following behind M113 on the flank.

The sudden appearance of the armored vehicle caught the Zion defenders off guard. They began throwing grenades at the vehicle and tried to fire, but the 7.62mm bullets and grenade fragments were unable to penetrate the front of the M113.

France and the United Kingdom provided Zion's troops with both Garil and L1A1 SLR rifles, but Zion's soldiers seemed to prefer using AK-47s captured on the battlefield.

Zafield fired a burst of fire at a soldier holding an anti-tank rocket, sending him sprawling backward, and then followed up with a grenade.

He shouted, "Allahu Akbar!!"

The remaining soldiers were also encouraged by the incoming fire support. Under the cover of armored vehicles, they advanced and quickly broke through the gap in the enemy's defenses.

Faced with the overwhelming force of the armored troops, the defenders of Zion had almost no chance to fight back. A small number of Zion soldiers even tried to surrender, but were mercilessly shot dead by Zafield.

Soon there were no more living Zion soldiers on the ground in the village of Talfar; the rest either hid underground or in some nook or cranny.

"Let's go, let's hand this over to the artillery, or even just the engineers, and have them fill in all the holes."

Zafield addressed Corporal Walid, who was throwing incendiary bombs into the cave entrance, and, looking at the heavy casualties among his men, gave the order to retreat.

Corporal Walid spat and limped down the slope.

(End of this chapter)