Middle Eastern tyrants

Chapter 220 The War Begins (Part 3)
"Why did the Arab allies launch the attack without waiting for Al-Iraq's Eastern Army Group to arrive? I demand an explanation!"

Just as Lu Lin finished his call with the "Solomon family," the Al-Irag Front's dedicated line came through.

A burst of excited Ant language came from the other end of the phone, and even after being translated by the interpreter, the tone still carried strong dissatisfaction.

Lu Lin's brows furrowed suddenly.

Damn it, who's the marshal, you or me?

He suppressed his anger and said coldly, "Mind your place! I am the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces. No matter what kind of advisor you are, you should remember your position! It is not your place to question my decisions!"

“But this goes against the established plan!” The other side refused to back down. “If we wait until our troops arrive, we can open a third front on the eastern front, putting Zion under attack from three sides! Your unauthorized change of the battle plan is risking the lives of your soldiers just to claim the credit for yourself!”

Lu Lin turned to look at Ibrahim, "Who is this simpleton?"

Ibrahim brought over a list of high-ranking military advisors submitted by Al-Ilag, but unfortunately it was all in Russian, and neither of them could understand a single word.

"State your rank and name, soldier!" Lu Lin shouted into the microphone.

A noisy discussion came from the other end of the phone. The translator seemed to be having trouble as well, and could only barely make out the words "Lev" and "Colonel".

Lu Lin knew what "Leo" meant; in Ant language, it meant "lion," like Leo Tolstoy.

"Colonel Lev," Lu Lin's voice carried an undeniable authority, "didn't Ant's military academy teach you how to treat your superiors?"

Even in peacetime, Lu Lin never felt the need to be overly polite to these bossy foreign advisors. What he detested most were these self-righteous people who liked to boss others around.

Perhaps realizing his outburst, Colonel Lev toned down his tone slightly, but it still betrayed his displeasure: "All the soldiers of Al-Ilag, including myself, need a reasonable explanation!"

Lu Lin took a deep breath. If it weren't for his concern that these fickle allies might suddenly withdraw their troops—he knew all too well what absurd things these scheming allies were capable of—he wouldn't have bothered with such an impolite question.

“According to our intelligence,” he said coldly, “Tel Aviv is holding an impeachment vote against Prime Minister Hilbert today. I believe this is the perfect opportunity to create a power vacuum within Zion, which is why we decided to launch the attack ahead of schedule. Are you satisfied with this explanation?”

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone before a restrained response came through: "I will head to the front-line command post immediately, and then we can discuss it in person."

After saying that, the phone was hung up.

Ibrahim handed over a cup of hot water and advised, "Calm down, don't lower yourself to their level. You know the people of Ant are always straightforward, it's not worth getting angry over them."

Lu Lin took the water glass, took a sip, and said with a grim expression, "I'm starting to regret agreeing to Kozone's offer."

Ibrahim gave Yehena a wink, signaling her to calm the marshal down.

Yehena understood immediately.

She stepped forward and whispered a few words in Lu Lin's ear, and his complexion gradually improved.

"Contact Bandar. I need to know the situation at the front," Lu Lin instructed. ————

"Tell the marshal that we've only just arrived in Tabashi and need some more time to resolve the mine clearance issue!"

Bandar watched the bombers flying overhead and dropping thermobaric bombs, and said to the communications officer, "The good news is that although the Zionians are still using artillery to bombard us, their accuracy has greatly decreased. We are preparing to put some pressure on them first and further compress their defenses."

After the communications officer finished recording, he turned and left. Bandar walked to the map and began discussing tactics and strategies with his staff.

Bandar: "This time, we are still the main force. Currently, our troops are positioned on the front line of Tabashi, while the Zion Army has formed a triangular defense at Nagba, Khatsor, and Ashdod. Chief of Staff, please report on the enemy's deployment first."

The chief of staff nodded and took the baton: "The reconnaissance battalion captured several prisoners at the front. According to the intelligence they brought back, in Nagba, the enemy's 188th Armored Brigade has deployed a mechanized infantry battalion, along with an anti-tank missile company, and laid mixed minefields in front of the positions."

On the Khatsorg side, enemy armored forces have converted old residential buildings into firing positions and equipped them with anti-tank missile batteries. The situation in Ashdod is currently unclear, but it is certain that electronic warfare equipment and artillery observation posts are located there.

The three lines of defense extend approximately 5 kilometers in depth and are connected by trenches.

The operations staff suggested: "Perhaps we can use a 'pincer cut' tactic, ordering the 35th Mechanized Infantry Brigade to hold back the Nagba defenders from the front, while the 401st Armored Brigade will outflank them in two routes. The left route will consist of an M60A1 tank battalion and engineer units equipped with mine-clearing plows, while the right route will consist of infantry fighting vehicles and 'Scorpion' anti-tank units. The two routes will meet at Hill 146, about 3 kilometers behind Hatzor, to complete the encirclement of the forward positions."

South of Tabashi lies a hilly and plain region, and further north lies the renowned Hermon Mountains—a mountain range that separates Phoenicia and Surya, and is sometimes considered the southernmost part of the Phoenician Mountains.

Bandar looked at the map and analyzed, "If I were a Zionist, I would definitely set up positions on the high ground west of the Hermon Mountains. After we break through, I would deploy armored forces to counterattack and take the opportunity to strike our flanks."

Therefore, we must organize a large-scale, prolonged artillery barrage to destroy as many of the enemy's exposed fortifications as possible, and send troops to attack enemy high ground positions from the flanks and rear.

Abbas, who was in charge of artillery command, responded: "We will deploy the 122mm howitzer battalion to launch a rapid attack on the front line of Nagba, while suppressing fire on suspicious areas near the Hermon Mountains. Once the advance troops have passed through the minefield, we will then suppress Nagba in an area. Self-propelled artillery units will be ready to conduct counter-battery operations at any time, but only if we need air support."

Brigade Commander Tamim of the reconnaissance brigade said, "We have marked all the enemy's suspected hiding areas, such as Hill 152, which has a lot of olive groves and is suitable for infantry to approach covertly. However, there is often sand and dust in the afternoon, which will affect the observation and aiming equipment."

Bandar gathered all the intelligence and made slight adjustments to the attack plan: "In this way, the 35th Mechanized Infantry Brigade will launch a feint attack 30 minutes in advance to attract enemy fire. The engineer corps will take this opportunity to continue clearing the way, and the reserve 12th Motorized Brigade will follow two kilometers behind the second echelon."

Baksh, who is in charge of logistics, said: "Currently, our fuel reserves are sufficient to sustain 48 hours of high-intensity combat operations. In terms of ammunition, we have 3.2 rounds of main gun shells and 1.7 rounds of anti-tank missiles."

Bandar nodded: "Remember, all units should use encrypted channels, and to prevent Zion from eavesdropping, the frequency should be changed every 30 minutes."

Inside the staff room, a chorus of "Yes!" immediately rang out.

班达尔最后确认作战时间节点：“各部队与13:00之前完成作战准备，第一阶段目标于18:00之前夺取146高地，第二阶段目标明日06:00前，前出至约克顿河东岸。”

He looked around at the officers in the command room: "Remember, we represent Shuangzhi. We must not only win, but win cleanly and decisively. We cannot let the Marshal down!"

After everyone confirmed the details, they quickly dispersed and began to deploy their combat operations. Arrows representing various units on the map slowly pointed towards the target area, and a raid was about to begin.

(End of this chapter)