Bodies In Motion
 

Time was running out for everyone: not just Israel. Even Drache was now in trouble. Having lost the three carriers of the Pacific Fleet, followed shortly thereafter by the nuclear destruction of the island of Diego Garcia, the American Congress decided to act. Some of its members had for some time criticised Drache for the disasters & wars of the last few years, but now a majority were more than merely concerned about current events. Without bothering to even warn the President that Congress had lost confidence in his leadership, the Senate began debating whether or not Congress should indite him for crimes against humanity.

Thus, on the eve of the greatest battle ever to take place in the Middle East, Drache discovered that he was in major political trouble back home. Furthermore, the Senate indicated its thoughts on the inditement matter by passing its part of the constitutional business within a day of debate. Drache, though, would still have enough time to defeat Israel & the UN armies before having to face his inditement trail before Congress. He still had enough supporters in Washington, including the Vice-President, to ensure that it would take some time before Congress could commence with their proceedings.

Nevertheless, Washington was not the only place where Drache was running out of time. Back in the Middle East, the UN finally got moving. Although the 2nd UN Army was still being formed in Iran, the 1st UN Army got its orders from UNCOM to get moving. Its objective was the invasion of Iraq which was still part of the CN. Unfortunately for the Iraqis, there would be no help from the Americans. Having committed all of their forces to the struggle in Israel, the Iraqi army of 100 000 was left facing 500 000 well motivated Russians. Furthermore, most Iraqis now wanted nothing to do with the CN & thus, when the first Russian stepped foot on Iraqi soil, most of the Iraqi army immediately defected to the UN.

That was everywhere except for Babylon. Although the CN city was far from complete, it had nonetheless been in operation for a few years now. In that time it had grown & various industries had established themselves there. Profits were made. Life had quickly become grand. And pleasures of all descriptions could be found. It had become a living city of just under 1 000 000 people albeit an artificial one. It was, nevertheless, a showcase to the world for the CN. As a result, its garrison of 15 000 troops had been hand picked & was loyal to the CN. Babylon would, unlike elsewhere in Iraq, offer resistance. To the invading Russians, though, that was fine with them as the 4th Army Corps was given the task of taking the city. After three days of battle, this was finally achieved. The commander of the 4th Corps, after the surrender, then turned a blind eye to his soldiers activities. In doing so, they understood immediately that they were to ransack & destroyed the city. Within two days, this had been achieved. UNCOM was not happy with the end result, but no one was ever charged over the destruction of Babylon either.

Even if UNCOM wanted to hold an inquiry into the fall of Babylon, they could not do it immediately anyway. Time did not permit it. Having taken Iraq, the now formed UN 2nd Army was sent to catch up with the 1st Army. Whilst that was being done, Drache had heard of the destruction of Babylon & demanded that the Syrians launch their offensive against northern Israel. Although Syria was becoming concerned about their eastern approaches, they nonetheless confirmed that they were ready to commence major operations the next day. As a result of their commitment, the offensive would be coordinated with the Americans in southern Israel who, likewise, would launch their own offensive. It was planned  that the main Israeli field army of about 300 000 troops would be encircled in the middle of the country somewhere north of Jenin. The Israeli forces along the coast, by now mostly reservists numbering a further 300 000, would be dealt with later. For them, defeat would be inevitable, albeit delayed.

The UN, however, were trying everything to stop an Israeli defeat from happening. Even before the 2nd UN Army made it to its positions along the Iraq border with Jordan, the 1st Army sent its 1st & 2nd Corps across the border to secure the routes to be taken by the rest of the UN forces. This move by the UN went unchallenged by the Jordan Army which had no intention of being destroyed whilst trying to protect Drache. Another country of the CN thus defected without a shot being fired. By this stage Drache could not care less about events elsewhere, but on the morning of the great CN offensive against Israel, he should have as the Russian 3rd Corps received orders to move to the Iraq border with Syria. This sudden move thus caught the Syrians out.
 

Of Mice & Men
 

Regardless, however, of what the UN was up to, the great CN offensive began on schedule. In the south, the main part of the Israeli army did everything it could to repulse the attacks. But it simply came down to firepower. The Americans had too much of it. Within a few hours, the Israelis began a fighting withdrawal to the north. This had been somewhat planned previously as a precaution should the Americans succeed in their attack, so the Israeli generals were not overly concerned when they had to issue the withdrawal orders. Alas for Israel, this was exactly what the CN generals wanted.

At the same time the Americans attacked, so too did the Syrians. Deploying 250 000 troops against the 50 000 Israelis defending the Golan Heights, the Syrians inevitably broke through at several locations along the Israeli defence line as they did in a previous war in 1973. Some Israeli positions, however, fought on gallantly in an effort to slow the Syrian advance, but in the end this heroic effort on behalf of the Israelis did little in the overall scheme of things. By the time Israel could move reserves to the Golan Heights, several Syrian army units had already reached the Jordan River. From there a frantic defence began, & even though the Syrians had suffered a high number of casualties, they nonetheless continued with their advance.

After two days, hence, of continuous heavy fighting, the Israelis found themselves surrounded at a location called Megiddo. Megiddo has a very long history of warfare. Being a hill which commands the entire valley around it, it is also the cross roads for land travel between Egypt, Syria & the Middle East beyond. It is no wonder then, that the first of many battles at Megiddo took place somewhere before 1400BC. On that occasion the Ancient Egyptians & Syrians fought a great & horrific battle. Since then in every age, even in the Twenty Century, pitched battles have raged around the hill. And once again, in a new century, the hill would become a witness to yet another great & dreadful battle.

But before that could be done, UNCOM decided to act in an effort to relieve Israel from some of the pressure of the war by opening new fronts. The first would be immediate, whilst the next would take a few more days in order to get the armies in place for future battles. The 3rd Russian Corps was thus ordered to advance into Syria. It was hoped that such an action would force Syria to halt its advance into Israel & rush troops back in order to defend itself against the UN invasion. This occurred to some degree, but the Syrian forces back home were already alerted by their border guards. Although these border guards were quickly overrun, the warning had nonetheless gotten out. Soon, a mixed force of 80 000 Syrians were on their way to intercept the 125 000 Russians heading for Damascus. Although Syria itself was now a battlefield, only a handful of Syrian units were transferred from the Israeli front to the new one back home.

The next step in the UN plan was to send the 2nd Army towards Jerusalem in an attempt to force American units to withdraw from their current positions around Megiddo, thus forcing them to defend the Holy City from the UN advance. Apart from the obvious reason why Jerusalem was an objective for everyone, there was also the supply lines of the CN to consider. Jerusalem acted as an important gateway for supplying the American army now at Megiddo. If the UN could hence take Jerusalem, then it would be the Americans encircled & cut off in central Israel instead of the Israelis. Needless to say, this was unacceptable to Drache. And this was besides the fact that Drache was currently located in Jerusalem whilst World War Three raged around him.

Finally, the remaining three Corps of 1st  UN Army would, meanwhile, fight its way through to the embattled Israeli Army, which was now down to 144 000 troops dug in around the hill at Megiddo. Great emphasis was placed upon 1st UN Army by UNCOM to achieve this as quickly as possible, because it was not known how much longer the Israelis could hold out.  The Israeli Prime Minister, who had joined his army at Megiddo just before they were surrounded, suggested that they could last for a week. Then he told the UN leadership, "Even if we do fall, Drache will pay an extremely high price for such a victory". The Prime Minister did not elaborate any further, whilst the UN leadership simply thought that the leader of Israel was merely keeping up a defiant stance.
 
 

And He Gathered Them Together Into a Place Called Armageddon
 
 

As a result of the UN strategy, even Drache had to accept the advice of his generals & change his plans accordingly. Henceforth, about 150 000 American troops were rushed back to defend Jerusalem. This meant that those units which remained facing the Israelis were significantly reduced to a force of about 50 000. Nonetheless, this was enough for a defensive posture & would continue to ensure that the Israelis were surrounded. It meant that the continued assault upon the Israeli positions would fall to the Syrians to the north & they had more than enough in both troops & ammunition to achieve victory.

The Israelis at Megiddo were, however, grateful for the reduction in CN firepower. Although they knew that they were still in a bad situation, the withdrawal of the Americans meant that they could concentrate their numbers in the northern sector & thus deal with the Syrian attacks which were bound to come. But due to the fact that the battle had been so horrific to date, their supplies of ammunition were perilously low. In the end, hence, even though the embattled Israelis may have the numbers to hold back the attacks, it would not have the bullets & shells to do so. Instead survival came down to time. And time was running out for the relief efforts being attempted by the 1st UN Army.

On the Jerusalem front, things were not all that much better for the UN war effort. The UN 2nd Army was forced to slow down in its advance. Having come under sever air attack, it was immediately discovered that, due to the pace of the advance, the UN 2nd Air Force could not adequately support & defend the 2nd Army from the sky. As a result, 2nd Army had to slow down in an attempt to ensure that the Air Force did its job. This remedied the air attack situation, but the longer it took to get to Jerusalem, the better prepared the CN forces were.

Only on the Syrian front did the UN enjoy success. Before Damascus, though, the Syrian home army gave battle to the Russian 3rd Corps advancing on the capital of Syria. It was a dreadful slogging match where the Syrians gave as good as they got. The fact that they were defending their capital city seemed to give the Syrians extra vigour & it was with much effort that the Russians eventually won the battle. However, that did not mean that the UN simply walked into Damascus. On the contrary. After the Syrians withdrew from the battlefield, they immediately took up positions in Damascus itself. They were clearly determined to defend their capital.

The next day would witness three different battles, which although separate, all would be intertwined as the events of one battle would effect events happening at the others. But although events taking place in Syria were important, the focus would be on Megiddo & Jerusalem. It is probably fair to say that fighting began at Megiddo first, so this is where we will concentrate for now. The Syrians, knowing that they were in trouble back home, launched their final effort to overrun the Israelis at Megiddo. Starting at first light, the Syrians threw everything at the Israeli Army. To further aid in this endeavour, the Americans to the south also launch an assault of their own which somewhat surprised the defenders. Within a few hours, the Israeli Prime Minister could see for himself that the end was near. At that point, not knowing where the 1st UN Army was, he made an all important radio call to MOSSAD headquarters in Tel Aviv. Operation "Divine Intervention" was to proceed immediately.

Around an hour or so before this moment, though, the 2nd UN Army finally commenced battle to the south of Jerusalem. The CN forces, mostly American, but now including some 10 000 Palistinian extremists, were lined up in a valley between the Old City & the Mount of Olives. Drache, in order to watch the Battle of Jerusalem, had positioned himself on the Temple Mount. It did not need, however, Drache’s presence for combat to begin - that seemed to happen all by itself. Hennceforth,  it was not long before the valley turned into a terrible scene, as helicopter gunships, like the American Apache, were swooping over the hills firing wildly at UN tanks & personnel carriers. Higher above in the skies, aircraft from both sides fought desperate battles in an effort to gain control of the air space. Soon artillery from both sides began to pound the other. Finally the American Abram M1 tanks joined the madness.

The UN army, from the start, did not fair well. Having only a limited number of gunships, the Americans soon controlled this aspect of the battle. Thus giving cover for their own tanks, the tanks of the UN army were soon being destroyed by the dozen. It did not matter whether they were Australian Leopard I tanks, Indian T-72s, or Chinese  Type-85s, the American armour was far, far better. Having said that, the American Apache squadrons paid dearly for their initial success. Infantry fired SAM rockets  began to find their targets. Soon fireballs could be seen over the battlefield as helicopter gunships began to explode in mid-air. Other helicopters fell from the sky as the damage which they received forced them to crash land. Meanwhile, the infantry on both sides hugged the ground in a vain effort to survive the mayhem around them.

Yet, at around about the same time as Megiddo was about to be overrun, a similar defeat appeared to be in the making for the 2nd UN Army. Drache was, naturally, delighted to see the beginnings of a UN withdrawal. He immediately ordered a pursuit of the UN force, but that was not to be. Due to the carnage, let alone the perfuse amount of ammunition used, the CN attack ordered by Drache would have to wait. There was also the fact that CN units were currently disorganised & would have to be reformed if any attack could succeed let alone take place. And last, but not least, there was the dead & wounded to care for. And even though all this was taking place across the CN army simultaneously, it would nevertheless take an hour before any pursuit could begin. It, though, would never happen.

Operation Divine Intervention, ordered by the Israeli Prime Minister, was the most desperate of ventures. It came about, however, by pure accident. As part of the original "Holy Treaty", Israel had to destroy all of its nuclear weapons. At the time, everyone believed that this had been achieved. And so it had. But last year, as MOSSAD was conducting a routine investigation into a security leak at the Ministry of Defence, it discovered the possibility that one nuclear weapon had gone missing in Israel somewhere in the early 1980s. The Prime Minister immediately ordered MOSSAD to investigate the matter further, fearing that someone else, other than Israeli security, may find its location & use it against Israel. MOSSAD eventually discovered its location & the reason for its disappearance.

The Prime Minister, inturn, now aware conflict was coming with the CN, decided to reactivate the original purpose for the Bomb just in case things became dire for Israel. And that time was now. The Bomb, one of the first ever made by Israel, was deliberately hidden in Jerusalem during the Six Day War of 1967. Should Jerusalem fall, & thus it was thought Israel had fallen with it, Jerusalem would be destroyed in an atomic fireball whereupon no one would have the Holy City. Again in 1973, during the Yom Kipper War, the bomb was activated for the same mission. But later during a time of peace, due to security & political  reasons, the Bomb had been conveniently forgotten. Nonetheless, it had been left in place should it ever be needed some time in the future.  Now, many years later, before the Israelis had withdrawn from Jerusalem a few weeks earlier, the Bomb had, for a third time, been activated & placed under MOSSAD authority.  Now having its mission called Operation Divine Intervention, the Bomb would finally complete its objective which it had begun all those years before.

The nuclear explosion caught everyone by surprise. Thankfully, for the sake of humanity, not that many people were killed by the detonation. Most citizens of Jerusalem, except for a few thousand extremists, had left the city thanks in part to the previous fighting there & the expected battle currently taking place. For the CN Army, they suffered a few thousand casualties, but for the most part, they had more to worry about from UN weapons than they had from the nuclear explosion behind them. The Bomb’s greatest casualty, however, was Drache himself. Being no more than a kilometre away from ground zero, he had enough time to realise that there was a bright flash of light behind him before he was vaporised by the force of the atomic explosion. Needless to say, those who were with him did not survive either.

The physical damage done to the city was, though, far more horrendous than the death rate. For a kilometre or two around ground zero, little remained. Even the Dome of the Rock, & the recently built Temple of Israel, were destroyed & laying in ruins. Further out, the damage continued, although it was not as sever as closer in. Yet, whatever was located within a 10 kilometre radius was now useless & beyond repair. And needless to say, the radiation would ensure that Jerusalem would remain in ruins for decades if not centuries to come.

Nevertheless, World War Three was, for all intents & purposes, over. The destruction of Jerusalem not only took the spirit for further warfare out of the CN forces, milling around Mount Olive, but news spread quickly to Syria as well, where the battling Russians had partly forced their way into Damascus. As more news came to hand, it was realised that President Drache had been killed in the explosion. The Syrian leadership, now without any support of any kind from the CN, with Russian UN troops fighting in their capital, decided to offer a cease-fire as soon as one could be arranged. This same offer was immediately offered to the Israeli Prime Minister who accepted it just as quickly as it was offered. Israel, except for Jerusalem, was saved - as was the Human race.
 

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