Father of France

Chapter 267 War Readiness Mobilization Order

"How could the Commander-in-Chief..." Colonel Saleh wanted to ask how General Dragon knew that the Arab countries were currently fighting their own battles.

“Syria and Egypt are definitely not going to provide support, and Jordan and Iraq are uncertain.” General Dragon gave Colonel Saleh a deep look and commented, “Establishing a joint command would at least allow us to know each other’s strategic objectives. Even if we don’t discuss who listens to whom, it would be a huge boost compared to the current situation where everyone is fighting their own battles.”

Regardless of the era, population is an important component of a country's strength. As a Frenchman, General Dracon was well aware of this. Now in a position of advantage, Farouk I's Egyptian army may not necessarily cooperate with Syria's strategic objectives. On the contrary, Syria may not even value the Egyptian army's combat capabilities.

Even so, there is still a need to establish a joint command, not only to obtain intelligence on Israel, but also to increase understanding of the armed forces of other Arab countries.

As the commander of the vast majority of officers and soldiers in the Syrian army, General Dragun's words still carry weight, and Colonel Saleh indicated that this was the proper course of action.

After recounting this incident, General Dragon offered a second suggestion: "Remember the mobilization mechanism before independence? Mobilize according to that mechanism. Don't underestimate the Israelis. Based on current public information, although the Arab countries have the advantage, they lack communication with each other, while Israel's military strength surpasses that of any of the Arab countries. If Israel seizes an opportunity to defeat one of them, it could trigger a chain reaction."

"It is extremely foolish to underestimate the enemy in war, especially since the Arabs do not know what Israel did during the ceasefire. But no matter what it does, Israel's total population remains unchanged. Weapons can be obtained through foreign aid, but people cannot be created out of thin air. According to Israel's theoretical mobilization limit, the more than 20,000 troops currently deployed in Syria are far from enough to increase the number of troops involved."

Currently, the Arab coalition forces consist of over 10,000 troops from Egypt, 20,000 from Jordan and Iraq combined, and over 20,000 from Syria, for a total strength of 50,000 to 60,000. Israel itself has 35,000 troops, far exceeding any other Arab nation.

This situation is a repeat of the Battle of Sarhu; Admiral Dragon certainly didn't know about the ancient battles of the Far East.

He himself dared not call himself a genius, and the Allied generals on the Western Front did not make any fatal mistakes in their evaluation of General Dragon.

In fact, General Dracon himself did not consider himself any better than those French generals who had already been labeled as conservatives at the beginning of World War II; he was actually a conservative general as well.

Therefore, if it is possible, the more troops the better. Based on the fact that the potential military strength of Arab countries far exceeds that of Israel, this quantification cannot be changed.

While Colonel Saleh pondered, General Dragun gave a standard answer typical of conservative generals: "It is never wrong to fight with superior numbers. Mobilize the Syrians and make it clear that the hope of victory always lies in ourselves, not in any holy family or Arab leader."

The Prophet's family is the current royal family of Jordan and Iraq. The royal families of these two countries not only share the same lineage, but also have not yet reached the third generation.

As for the leader of the Arab countries, that is of course the self-proclaimed title of King Farouk I of Egypt, which has the largest population and the strongest paper power among the Arab countries.

"Tomorrow, the General Staff will invite a Syrian military delegation to visit us for a war game exercise." General Dragon extended the invitation at this moment. France could not provide heavy weapons and equipment, but he still offered very serious advice on other aspects.

The day after the ceasefire, Ben-Gurion passed a resolution to reorganize local militias into the Israel Defense Forces, which would then be under unified command to counter the attacks by the Arab coalition.

While the Arab coalition forces were still fighting independently, Israel changed its previous stance of not being subordinate to any of them.

However, the Arabs were oblivious to the changes that were happening right before their eyes. Everyone looked relaxed, as if victory was already in their grasp, and they really regarded the ceasefire as a halftime break.

Compared to other Arab countries, the Syrian army has performed much better. While the Italian campaign wasn't considered a major battle, it was still a world war. As a regular army, the Syrian army is not as disorganized as the armies of other Arab countries, and the Damascus Ministry of Defense has already received Colonel Saleh's reply in Paris.

In response to the internal power struggles within the United Nations during this ceasefire, the generals in Damascus held an internal meeting to discuss whether to increase troop numbers and conduct war mobilization.

Other Arab countries do not yet have war mobilization systems; this concept is completely foreign.

Syria is different. France recruited 400,000 soldiers from Syria. Although the Christians left Syria after the war, the remaining Muslim soldiers from various factions have become the most powerful people in Syria today. If there is anything different about Syria in Koman's world, it is that Syria in this world became a military government after independence. Even if it is nominally a civilian government, it is actually a result of reducing the size of the army after independence and having Muslim soldiers from various factions enter the government to form a so-called civilian government.

Civilian government officials are simply soldiers who have taken off their uniforms.

These defense ministry generals and former government military personnel gathered in Paris for a meeting with Colonel Saleh to discuss the future course of the war after the ceasefire.

"Paris is now economically held hostage by Washington, and we can't get the weapons we want, so we can only try to find a way to improve our manpower." The first general to speak said firmly, "Our previous commander, General Dragon, was right, the hope of victory lies only in ourselves."

"Indeed, the Cairo side was not enthusiastic about our suggestion to establish a joint command, and the Jordanian and Iraqi coalition forces were even more at odds with our ideas."

The meeting room was filled with complaints about the so-called Arab brother countries. Then they began to discuss how many troops the country could support for combat, since they could only use existing weapons and it was impossible to bring all their troops to the battlefield. What was Syria's ultimate goal?
"The objective is now clear: to occupy the Upper Jordan region," a major general from the Alawite sect summarized, referring to northern Palestine, including Haifa, and to control the water supply of the upper Jordan River.

"The Paris side believes that if Israel replenishes its forces through a ceasefire, it will first attack Egypt on the southern front, and then the Jordanian and Iraqi coalition forces on the eastern front, because both of these armies are only 30 kilometers away from Tel Aviv. If this guess is correct, we have plenty of time to deal with it."

In faraway Paris, after completing his wargaming exercise, Coman felt himself being called upon. Could it be the little dragon riders of the Saar district summoning him? It was entirely possible.

"Reinforce the Haifa line, establish an offensive force of 50,000 men in three divisions, issue a mobilization order, gather the nation's young men, and dig a trench from the Golan Heights to Haifa. We cannot be as arrogant as the Egyptians. Digging trenches is just a matter of sweating. If Israel really gets help from somewhere, our soldiers will pay a bloody price."

“Then let’s do it this way.” As soon as he finished speaking, the generals sitting on both sides of the long table stood up at the same time. “Increase the strength of the expeditionary force for the Haifa offensive, to three divisions. Set up a defensive line in the Upper Jordan region, mobilize the youth of the country to carry out construction, and establish a defensive system covering Upper Jordan before the ceasefire period around the four weeks ends.”

On May 29, the Syrian government issued a mobilization order, calling on Syrian youth to join military training in preparation for the end of the ceasefire.

The order was issued swiftly. In every street of Damascus, in the ancient markets of Aleppo, in the port of Latakia, and on the plains of Homs, the mobilization order spread throughout the country via radio, newspapers, and the minarets of mosques. As night fell completely, long lines formed in front of conscription stations across the nation. People held oil lamps, creating chains of light in the darkness, like galaxies on the earth.

A rally in support of the mobilization order is being held in Damascus, with a large crowd listening to speeches by Syrian nationalists.

"Syrian sons and daughters!" The impassioned voices echoed in the square, "Tonight, we stand at the crossroads of history. Our brothers are weeping in Palestine, their land has been taken, their homes have been occupied!"

"We are here to defend justice and the right of Arabs to live on this land!" There is no shortage of a straight man in any situation, but this is especially necessary in such situations.

These few words ignited the enthusiasm of the gathering. Inspired by God and fueled by hatred for Israel, Syrian youth responded to the call and joined the mobilization.

Countless young people set off with the reinforcements sent to Haifa. The labor army would dig up the land around Haifa, turning farmland into a network of trenches like a spider web, trapping any possible reinforcements from the south in the mud.

These trenches will extend from different directions to the edge of Haifa town, serving as the starting point for the next Syrian army offensive on Haifa.

Around this important northern port of Palestine, dust could be seen rising everywhere from the trenches, making it impossible for the Jews of Haifa to break out, while Israeli reinforcements from other directions were also cut off from this trench system.

This is somewhat similar to the German advance into the sea during World War I. When heavy weapons are lacking, things often turn out this way. Civil engineering can be used to mitigate the enemy's firepower, at least ensuring that they don't lose.

(End of this chapter)