Al Aqsa | Jerusalem

Benjamin Netanyahu was walking back and forth along the safest underground bunker of the Israeli Administration. The previous evening, Palestine had declared independence. 160 countries had supported the vote at the United Nations General Assembly. A few Pacific and Caribbean islands had voted against after having been heavily bribed by the Zionists. A 195:0 vote would have been too humiliating for Ben Gurion’s descendants; 160:10 and a few abstentions looked slightly better. Yet, the Jewish weakness was evident. The West Bank and Gaza had celebrated the unquestionable victory during the whole night, knowingly delaying the inevitable for a few hours. The Israeli Administration was still to react to the news.

Netanyahu was smoking; a habit he tried keeping secret. His fussiness with the media demanded that in the past, but it didn’t matter anymore. It was time to take a critical decision and he was trapped in his own extremist ideology and coalition; he had no choice. Tel Aviv, Haifa and West Jerusalem were deserted, the people living there knew exactly what was about to happen and hid away. Israeli National Security Adviser Ya'akov Amidror was consulted by Netanyahu, but it was just an empty gesture. Both agreed on a televised speech to the nation.

Less than an hour later he appeared, as arrogant as ever, on the screens and began speaking in his clumsy Hebrew; his long relations with the USA were reflected by his choice of words. He restricted himself to a phrasing which could be literally translated into English or other Indo-European languages. In less than ten minutes he delivered a dry and uninspiring message. Israel had revoked unilaterally the Oslo Agreements. The IDF would proceed to take complete control over the West Bank and Gaza.

IDF reservists had been in the process of a “quiet call” during the last week. By now, the IDF had recruited about a quarter of them; the rest wouldn’t accept the immoral order. Following Netanyahu’s announcement, Shin Beth officers had been deployed, they would guide the IDF into the main targets, as described in The Cross of Bethlehem. A couple of hours after midnight, the orders were given. In an awesome display of force, violence and state-terror , the IDF took over all Palestinian institutions. They met no opposition. After hours of frenetic work, they discovered they have captured empty buildings. Nothing of value had been left, as the Israeli attack had not been a surprise. The IDF – suffering of a partial recruitment – had been also split into a myriad of tiny forces locked up in useless buildings. Isolated units were busy securing their new acquisitions. the IDF Civil Administration was busy issuing confiscation orders on lands and building all over the West Bank and Gaza; they still kept the façade claiming Israel was a legal entity.

Basilica of Nativity | Bethlehem

The Palestinian leadership had no central bunker. That was one of their main strengths. The newly formed state immediately became a loose federation of army units. Very little coordination was needed; the main task at every location was clear. Coffee, olive oil and pita bread made a nutritious breakfast; a suitable prelude to the war about to begin.

These weren’t the intifada days. Palestinians were better organized, had a police force and weapons. Gaza had become a military stronghold. Hezbollah in Lebanon was strong and would probably help. In 2006 and 2009 the IDF had proven unable to defeat it. The IDF was expecting a third Intifada; nothing prepared it to what happened in the following hours.

Instead of violent protests against the brutal Israeli attacks, Palestinians moved outwards, into Israel. Illegal Israeli settlements were under siege. Israeli cities faced sporadic attacks of Palestinian infantry forces. Fat and arthritic, the IDF couldn’t adapt fast enough. Some Israeli citizens organized themselves into militias; yet, the Palestinians were having small - but significant - territorial gains.

Was this a guerrilla war or a civil war? The opponents were so mixed up that answering this was no possible. Palestinian snipers had successfully blocked Israeli traffic near Netanya – Israel’s narrowest point – and had dissected Israel. Neither Palestine nor the Israeli Administration had now territorial continuity.

Netanyahu was getting worrying reports. “Sde Kotzim” (Field of Thorns) – the IDF operative plan for the case of an insurrection in the occupied territories had collapsed. All military operations were now tactic in nature; the central command lacked coherent plans. More worrying was the fact Netanyahu’s communications with Kanaf 2 (Wing 2), the airbase hosting the nuclear airborne missiles, had been cut. This wasn’t a war he could win. This time he wasn’t fighting against a few clowns locked up in a plane; he hadn’t any chance. Finally, Netanyahu got it. Political conflicts cannot be solved by force. You can force quiet; you can’t force peace.

The math was simple. Israel was an empty carcass; vultures had eaten it from inside. No gold reserves. Every significant company was heavily invested abroad. The riches families – owning over 80’% of the economy – literally owned whole underground vaults in Zurich, Liechtenstein and Luxemburg, and were ready to leave the country at any moment. The State of Israel had very little in common with Masada; Faith wasn’t such a common denominator. Netanyahu gave the order to leave. He called for the American Sixth Fleet and then sent a codified message to his submarines fleet. Washington's Sixth Fleet would evacuate the staff of most embassies and the coward Zionist leaders while the Israeli citizens perished. The Warring Family would be on the ships down to their last black sheep.

Somewhere in the Northern Atlantic Ocean, the commander of the “Tkuma” – one of the Israeli Dolphin class submarines constructed in Germany – was looking for the third time at the incredible order he just got. The confirmation codes were all in place. Feeling as if his blood had frozen, he contacted the relevant officers and gave the order. No questions were asked. After the Israeli education system taught them Germans were all to blame because they hadn’t refused illegal orders, IDF officers followed the same path for the millionth time. Without thinking twice, his fleet delivered seven nuclear heads. Minutes later, Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem and the Nativity Basilica in Bethlehem were gone.

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