General Aslawi was considering the practicalities of the idea. He said "How can you combine the device with the hostages. Do you think it would fit in the pocket of one of them?" and snickered.
The Imam was not in the least amused, and as the Senior Assistant looked at him expectantly he replied "Surely you are joking General Aslawi" in reference to the title of Richard Feynman's book "I have given a lot of thought to this crucial stage of my grand plan". He then explained in detail how he intended to overcome the problem of delivering the nuclear device.
The Senior Assistant was impressed and even the general wiped off the smug expression from his face and nodded appreciatively. The Senior Assistant concluded the meeting by saying "So far only the three of us know about this plan. I suggest that we tell the Supreme Leader only as much as he needs to know at this stage. I believe that we need his consent to proceed but can spare him the details." The other two consented and the meeting was adjourned.
A deeply frustrated David Avivi sat across the desk from Haim Shimony and gave him a verbatim report of the meeting in Moscow. Shimony who had known David well for many years had never before seen him in such a state of anxiety. David said "I have totally failed in convincing the Imam, or even General Koliagin, that we had nothing to do with the elimination of the Iranian nuclear scientists. Haim, we need unequivocal proof that the whole operation was carried out by Segan's firm and that he acted without our approval and without our knowledge. Now that Sam and Ruby are dead there are only two people who can clear us — Segan and the English gentleman, if he even exists. In order to do so we must find Segan, break him and have him publicly admit his guilt and exonerate Israel. I am afraid that the Russians may lay their hands on him first or that some other intelligence organization would simply eliminate him before we can get him to do this. With regard to the English gentleman our only link is through Segan, unless we can uncover some other way of contacting him".
Shimony listened patiently and then said "Let's go back to the basics of criminology — look for the motive. We should go straight to whoever sent this gentleman to Segan in the first place. Surely he was not acting on his own. Someone was funding the whole operation, someone who stood to benefit directly from the elimination of the scientists or indirectly from the consequences of the operation. I believe we should divide our focus. You, David, go after Segan and the English gentleman, while our top analysts will figure out who stood to gain from the removal of these scientists. You can enlist help from Julia, to whom I am told by my sources, you have taken quite a fancy". This last statement was with a small smile, watching David's reaction that caused him to blush.
David responded "I'll be off to Berlin tomorrow. I would like to meet the analysts this evening and share the information I have on the Iranians, particularly the reaction of the Imam to my presentation. I am sure that he is up to some mischief and had something up his sleeve. The way he ignored my question about the hostages must have been intentional. Yet I believe that they are willing to meet again and negotiate the release of the hostages."
Shimony responded "I am not sure that they have given up their intentions of developing nuclear weapons. At present they have a lot to lose if the sanctions are renewed but we are all aware that the nuclear deal that they signed has some loopholes they would exploit if the circumstances change. I'll instruct the analysts to focus on scenarios that may drive the Iranian regime to take risks and carry out dangerous steps. First and foremost is the fear of losing control of the country. This is where the interests of the religious leadership coincide with the concerns of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard for the economic empire they had constructed."
David fully agreed with his boss and said he would go to see the analysts immediately.
Chapter 14
General Koliagin looked at the full ashtray on his desk and then glanced at the antique clock that hung opposite his chair at the head of the large conference table. He was waiting for his top aides and analysts to enter the room but had been wondering how to open the meeting and how much he would tell them about the recent events. He pressed a button on the intercom and barked an order to summon his personal secretary. The tall girl entered the room without knocking on the door, looked at the general and saw the overflowing ashtray and knew that he was in a foul mood. She leaned over allowing her ample breasts to linger on his shoulder and gently picked up the ashtray. He managed to force a smile and she slowly stroked the back of his neck feeling the tension dissipating. She asked him if he wanted something to drink before the meeting and he just motioned for her to take the ashtray and let them in.
They filed in silently and took their seats according to their rank and importance. Those in uniform sat on both sides near the head of the table while the advisors and analysts took the chairs at the far end of the table. The general's adjutant turned on the projector and pressed a button that rolled down the screen and another that closed the curtains. The senior analyst stood up and took the remote control in his hand waiting for the general to open the meeting.
General Koliagin looked around the table holding the eyes of each participant for a few seconds and reading their expressions. All of them were experts on the political situation in Iran or officers in the Russian military that were familiar with the plans for armed intervention in Iran if such a case arose. Some were FSB personnel that were in charge of gathering intelligence for the analysts as well as recruit collaborators inside the Iranian establishment. The older hands displayed no emotion and appeared to be "poker faced" without even a hint of what was going on in their minds, while the junior members were clearly intimated by the iron stare of the general. They all knew that their careers could rise and prosper or be abruptly terminated by the general. He spoke so quietly that those at the far end of the table had to strain their ears to hear him. "I would like a candid review of the situation in Iran. I am especially curious about the changes, if any, brought about by the signing of the nuclear deal. We have never fully trusted Iran, even after we supplied them with advance weapon systems like the S-300 aerial defense anti-aircraft missiles, with armament of various kinds and contracted to build more nuclear power plants in addition to the one in Bushehr. Their course record in respecting agreements has been less than perfect to say the least. They were caught in violation of signed contracts numerous times and always came up with lame excuses to justify these infractions. Who knows what they managed to get away with. We don't know what we don't know but there is no limit to what we suspect. Please speak freely."
The senior analyst who was considered as the expert on Iranian affairs cleared his throat and screened his first slide that showed a schematic of the different government organizations in Iran. "The legislature or Islamic Consultative Assembly (the Majles for short) consists of 290 members who are elected by popular vote, as is the president, for a four-year term. However, all the candidates have to gain approval of the Council of Guardians whose members are in charge of interpreting the constitution and supervising the elections. In addition there is a council of experts that consists of 88 masters of Islamic law, called the Assembly of Experts. They are elected for an 8-year term. This council is controlled by the clerics who wield the real power and they elect the Supreme Leader. The Supreme Leader is also commander-in-chief of the armed forces and controls the intelligence and security agencies. He practically has absolute power over the judiciary system, the media and appoints all the members of the Council of Guardians who oversee the Majles. The elected president has some authority but cannot take any significant action without the approval of the Supreme Leader and Council". The analyst continued to describe the power structure in Iran highlighting the fact that it is first and foremost a theocratic Islamic government. At the end of his talk he said that there is an ongoing struggle between the conservative elements that wish to retain control by the clerics and religious Islamic establishment and the more liberal factions. He emphasized that he is using the term "liberal" freely because they are also not against a theocratic regime. Their main objectives are to be more open to the West and reduce unemployment especially among the educated people who cannot find suitable jobs in Iran. Finally he said that in the election that was held in 2016 the ultra-conservatives lost several seats in the Majlis and the Assembly of Experts to the more liberal candidates. This was especially prominent in Tehran and among the more educated voters, while in the rural areas the turn-out of voters was lower but they still gave support to the conservative candidates.