Middle Eastern tyrants

Chapter 180 The Counterattack of the Sudri Faction

Zion, Lamat David Air Force Base.

Captain Elan looked at the mission briefing in his hand and felt a chill creep up his fingertips and spread throughout his body.

The mission was approved by General Gorodish and personally ordered by Prime Minister Hilbert, requiring the Air Force to cooperate with ground forces to clear out PLO members in the West Beirut refugee camp.

Captain Elan knew that West Belute had already been taken by Zion, and there was no PLO there at all.

All that remained were women, children, and the elderly.

In other words, this was a genocide.

Captain Elan gathered several of his squadron's most trusted pilots and then announced the order to them.

All the soldiers looked at each other in bewilderment.

"God will never forgive us, and our souls will be condemned to eternal hell!"

"This must be another idiot's terrible idea that came up with for the Prime Minister. Oh, this is absolutely awful."

"This is not war, it's massacre!"

At this moment, a young pilot retorted in a fanatical tone: "So what? We are soldiers, and obeying orders is our duty! For the survival of Zion, we have to go to hell! All the pests must be eradicated!"

Captain Elan glanced at the young man, then turned to his adjutant and whispered, “Go and explain the nature of this mission to everyone in the squadron. Make it clear to them that if anyone doesn’t want to go, they can say so now.”

The adjutant stared at him in astonishment.

Elan lowered his voice even further: “If they don’t want to go, let them go to the medical officer and say it’s a sudden outbreak of infectious acute herpes. I’ll grant them leave.”

"Understood." The adjutant nodded heavily and hurriedly turned to carry out the order.

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 salon of the Shuangzhi conservatives.

Amidst the opulent carpets and swirling cigar smoke, Prince Mursed and his high-ranking relatives were basking in the joy of their recent victories, the atmosphere jubilant and triumphant.

Their "demodernization" campaign has been progressing efficiently and smoothly in recent days, gaining advantages in many areas such as education, healthcare, and people's livelihood, causing the progressives to begin to regress.

“We are organizing the teachers of the Supreme Religion to systematically incorporate the progressive, heretical ideas of so-called ‘modernization’ and ‘secularization’ into the commentaries on religious precepts and the precedents of Islamic law.”

Prince Finnoom of the Sheikh family smiled as he explained the recent progress in religious schools: "Through this gradual, everyday influence, people can understand from the bottom of their hearts that upholding tradition is the right choice, and spontaneously prevent them from being misled by those bizarre and outlandish Western cultures and things."

Once the ideological imprint is made, the progressives' retreat is completely blocked.

Prince Talal also laughed and said, "The bloodshed in Daman this time came at the perfect time! It put the Sudri faction directly on the opposite side of everyone! Let alone us, they're probably too busy with the United States' accountability to care about anything else. If it weren't for Muhammad, he would probably be in a complete mess by now."

A knowing, smug laugh rang out in the hall.

“After today, we will jointly request to visit His Majesty and give them another push,” Mursad said with a smile.

In fact, it is not hard to see from the situation of the Sudri faction during this period that His Majesty the King's condition must be not optimistic, and there is a high probability that his death will be kept secret.

From the perspective of conservatives, the tide has turned, and there seem to be no more significant obstacles on the road to the pinnacle of power.

Just then, Prince Mursed's secretary rushed in nervously and whispered a few words in his ear.

The smile on Mursad's face vanished instantly, and he immediately ordered, "Quick! Turn on the radio!"

The melodious music in the hall abruptly stopped, and the broadcast switched to the national news channel. All the princes sensed the unusual significance of this.

Immediately afterwards, a clear and solemn voice came from the radio:

"In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious and Merciful, and by the decree of His Majesty Shams bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Guardian of the Two Holy Lands, the Royal Family hereby formally announces the establishment of the 'National Welfare and Development Fund'."

Upon hearing this long-unheard voice, the expressions of all the princes changed drastically.

Muhammad!

Mursad's face was so dark it looked like it could drip water; he realized that the Sudri faction's counterattack was coming.

"...This fund aims to allow all citizens to share in the blessings of oil bestowed by God..."

In the Idris household, the voice on the old radio continued: "From this day forward, a portion of the Kingdom's annual oil revenue will directly benefit every citizen with dual citizenship."

The fund's returns will be distributed in two parts: one is a living allowance, which will be deposited directly into the national account and is limited to domestic daily consumption; the other is an education and medical allowance, which will be used specifically for deducting expenses at designated hospitals and schools..."

If Lu Lin were to hear this now, he would be greatly surprised: Isn't this just universal health insurance and social security? Of course, in this era, Shuangzhi doesn't yet have such a concept.

After hearing what was said on the radio, the older brother, Durach, hesitated and asked, "Does this mean they're going to give us money?"

Idris nodded: "Yes, it seems that His Majesty the King personally ordered it to be issued."

"So... His Majesty the King is alright?"

The father gently slapped the back of their heads: "Never mind all that! Let's hurry up and check the bank account to see if the money is real! If we're late, the line will be full!"

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 salon instantly erupted in chaos.

"How dare they?!" A prince slammed his fist on the table in anger. "Oil dividends have always belonged to the royal family! What do they have to do with those commoners? Muhammad is wasting our money!"

“This is usurpation! It’s against the rules!” another prince chimed in. “I propose that Muhammad be impeached in Parliament immediately! We must reject this absurd proposal!”

Incidentally, all of Shuangzhi's oil resources legally belong to the royal family, and the specific proportion of its revenue has always been directly controlled by the king himself, making it the core source of the royal family's wealth and power.

At first, no one paid much attention, because all the princes could freely withdraw this money from the royal treasury.

But now things have changed.

Prince Talal exclaimed urgently, "That's right! We'll reject his proposal in parliament and take the money back! This will not only damage his credibility but also get the money back—a win-win situation!"

Prince Mursad glared at him as if he were an idiot, and snapped, "Take it back? How do you intend to take it back? He might have already distributed the money. Are you going to send troops to snatch it back from the people's pockets?!"

Prince Talal was speechless.

Prince Finnoom of the Sheikh family calmly analyzed: "If it's just distributing some money, perhaps the problem isn't too big. This money will eventually flow back into the industries we control through consumption."

But Prince Mursed looked grim, and his unease grew stronger.

He knew that Muhammad's move was not just about winning people's hearts; it must have a deeper and more deadly purpose.

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.

Crowds marching in Daman City, Eastern Province.

Some protesters who were originally holding signs and preparing to vandalize "Westernized" hospitals and schools rushed to nearby banks to check their accounts after hearing the broadcast.

"There really is money!" someone exclaimed. "I have an extra 2400 riyals in my account!"

2400 riyals was roughly equivalent to $800 at the time, which was a considerable expense, almost equivalent to half a year's income for an average family, enough to significantly improve their lives.

The crowd immediately stirred, and then they discovered that part of the money was cash, while the other part was actually "vouchers" specifically for education and medical care, which could not be withdrawn directly.

According to the broadcast, these "vouchers" can only be used at modern hospitals and schools.

Doesn't this mean that once they vandalize these places, the money will be useless in the future?

A young protester hesitated, glancing at their leader: "Should we continue? This hospital...it seems like we're now involved too?"

As the leader observed the subtle shifts in the attitudes of the people around him, he too began to waver.

He put away the banner and whispered to his companion, "...Don't rush, let's see how things go first, let's wait and see."

The same scene is playing out in various locations around Shuangzhi.

People no longer care about "demodernization" or "returning to conservative thinking"; they are all asking when they can get in line at the bank and when they can withdraw their money.

"Is this money really paid out every year?"

"I heard that the scope of the 'vouchers' will be expanded in the future, in addition to medical care and education."

Only a small number of people realized that from this moment on, an unprecedented bond would connect them closely to the country.

The interests of the nation will directly affect their interests.

Most people, however, are oblivious and immersed in the joy of getting rich overnight. When they realize that they can profit from those modern hospitals and schools, who would still want to smash and destroy them? Even if I don't use my things, I can just leave them there, it doesn't matter.

Thus, a massive "de-Westernization" movement began to show signs of decline at its peak.

(End of this chapter)