East of Nakba (20)

 

(Japanese Version)

(Arabic Version)

June, 2022

Part I. Israel bombs a nuclear plant in Iran

 

Chapter 20. Wandering three little birds (1)

After completing the mission to bomb the Natanz nuclear plant, three Israeli jet fighters shook off the pursuit and escaped from Iranian airspace.

 

However, what was waiting there was a command of headquarter to change the flight course to the south over the Persian Gulf and head for the Strait of Hormuz. Soon after, they were given the astonishing information that the refueling aircraft had been shot down by Saudi Arabian Air Force. In the original plan, the refueling aircraft was to greet three jets on the way back to home which was the same route as the outbound one. Three little birds would be planned to refuel there. The parent bird was supposed to feed the three little birds with full of fuel, and they triumphantly would return to the base together.

 

With no milk from their mother, the three little birds had to drift over the Persian Gulf southward. There was not enough fuel to fly for an hour. It was certain that they were unable to across the Strait of Hormuz. There was no choice but to be ditched in the Persian Gulf. Even if they escaped with a parachute before the crash, who would pick them up? The left bank was Iran, where they had just bombed Natanz plant. The right bank was hostile Arab countries like Saudi Arabia or UAE. If they were helped by Iranian patrol or fishing boat, it was a tragicomedy. If they were helped by Arabian boats, they would become scapegoat. In any case, they couldn’t expect to return home as a triumphant.

 

Three confused pilots responded in different manner.

 

The "elite" suppressed his shock and pretended to be calm as a leader. He advised "Mafia" and "Abdullah" not to get upset and encouraged them that the headquarter would undertake rescue operation. He himself had no self-confidence, but he knew that the Israeli army had never abandoned their soldiers in any difficult situation. The "elite" believed that headquarters would surely rescue them.

 

There were several reasons for his optimistic thinking. One reason was there were two US military bases in the Persian Gulf. In Bahrain, U.S. Fifth Fleet was stationed and U.S. Central Command's frontline headquarters was in Al Udeid, Qatar. Furthermore, the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier "Harry S. Truman" was deploying near the Strait of Hormuz by chance.

 

<Our headquarter must ask the US military to rescue us. My dad must be involved. ＞

 

The "elite" and his colleagues had been flying between the blue sky and the emerald green sea.

 

(cont’d)

 

Areha Kazuya