Reza leaned forward. “Indeed I did. And you should be able to guess the second, after the report you gave me about the exercise.”
Now Bijan was truly shocked. “But the Qataris will be attacking the Saudis alongside us!”
Reza showed no emotion at all. “Yes, and they will leave their country defenseless as a result. And we will have weapons capable of great destruction in Qatar, at their invitation. The howitzers are self-propelled, correct?”
Bijan nodded numbly.
“So, after the attack on the Saudi blockaders, we can move the howitzers to the port at Doha under the guise of preparing to return them to Iran. That will put them in perfect position to threaten the Qatari capital. I imagine it would take no more than a few volleys to bring down many of their famous high-rise buildings. Plus, we already have some troops stationed in Qatar,” Reza said with satisfaction.
Bijan shook his head. “But Qatar is majority Sunni, and its population has shown no signs of rebellion. Can we really force regime change just by threatening to destroy some of their buildings?”
Reza smiled. “No, you’re right that we couldn’t bring down Qatar’s monarchy so easily, but it will make them willing to listen to our proposal.
What we will offer is an alliance guaranteeing that no canal will be built cutting off Qatar from the Arabian Peninsula, and no embargo will be allowed against it. After the damage we will do to Saudi Arabia, I think Qatar will be far down their priority list. Of course, our protection will come at a cost.”
Bijan frowned. “Are you sure the Qataris will give in so easily? They could call their tanks and planes back from attacking Saudi Arabia, and make short work of our howitzers. For that matter, they could probably do it with whatever forces they leave behind.”
Reza’s smile grew wider. “Of course, at the right time you will need to make sure the Qataris understand that at the first sign they are doing any such thing our howitzers will immediately open fire on downtown Doha, and the armor we have not far away to attack the Saudis will switch to targeting them. Besides, think logically. Who else will protect Qatar from an eventual revenge attack by the Saudis?”
Bijan grunted, and at first said nothing. Reza had a point. Having kicked out the Americans, Qatar had few options left. They certainly weren’t going to ask the Russians for help. Iran could well be in a position to dictate terms, since the Saudis would eventually attack Qatar for its role in the war that was about to start, even if the Qataris were initially successful.
Finally, though, Bijan couldn’t restrain himself. “But is this really all something we can call ‘war’? Two small armored forces, a few nuclear weapons that may or may not work — isn’t all this a huge gamble in taking on the best-armed country in the region behind only Israel and Egypt?”
To Bijan’s surprise Reza didn’t appear even a little upset or offended. “I understand your concerns. But think about Russia’s success in Crimea.
Propaganda, some Special Forces troops, and repeated denials that the Russian government had anything to do with what was happening were all that they deployed. Still, in a matter of months, somehow a territory of twenty-seven thousand square kilometers with a population of over two million was under Russian control. You can say what we’re going to do isn’t a war. I say it is war — as it’s practiced in the modern age.”
Bijan had to bite back the comments that came to mind at the incongruity of the lecture in modernity being delivered by the black-robed cleric before him.
Besides, he was right.
Aloud, he said, “I see your point. In the end, all that matters is whether we can apply sufficient pressure at enough points simultaneously to bring an end to the Saudi royal family’s rule.”
Reza nodded. “Good. Now that you understand our options, all that’s left is to get our forces in place. Remember to stop by before you leave when you have plans finalized to deal with securing the Assembly of Experts. Once you are in Qatar I may send you further orders, depending on the success of our nuclear and ground attacks.”
Bijan nodded, rose and left.
Reza looked at Bijan’s retreating back and sighed. He had known a military man like Bijan would not be happy with what he would see as treachery. Well, high-minded principles had no place in his plans to secure Iran’s future in the few years he had left. Reza was fighting for the souls of his countrymen, and sentiment had no place in that battle.
Now that Farhad Mokri had convinced his uncle to hand over the weapons his team had developed, Reza would have to convince him that bombing Riyadh was necessary. Farhad would then need to convince his Saudi friend that this step was unavoidable.
Well, Farhad was the one who'd convinced Reza to authorize the use of VX against the Saudis' air bases. And Farhad's Saudi friend had his father killed by the Saudi government.
Yes, they might not like it. But Reza was betting they would go along.
Grand Ayatollah Reza Fagheh looked at Guardian Colonel Bijan Turani’s expression for a clue about whether he would be pleased by his news, and was happy with what he found. Bijan’s normally serious expression wasn’t smiling, but did appear… satisfied.
Bijan wasted no time confirming Reza’s impression. “I believe we have a plan to keep the Assembly of Experts occupied while the operation is underway.”
Reza nodded with relief. One of his great worries had been that once their plan was being executed, one or more of the other Ayatollahs in the Assembly of Experts would discover Reza’s role in the war and call for an immediate election to select a new Supreme Leader. For Reza to have a chance to win that election, he had to delay it until the war was at a minimum successful at overthrowing the Saudi royal family’s grip on Saudi Arabia.
Anything else he managed to accomplish, like helping the Shi'a majority in Bahrain to overthrow its Sunni monarchy, would help even more.
Bijan continued, “Everything depends on the successful detonation of at least one of the three nuclear devices against a Saudi target. My men can then quickly rush into the Secretariat building, and tell the Ayatollahs that they must be moved to a nearby bomb shelter for their safety in case of a retaliatory raid by either the Saudis or the Israelis, who have threatened to attack anyone using nuclear weapons in the Middle East with their own nuclear stockpile. Once they are in whatever we decide to call a ‘bomb shelter,’ they will be under our control. We will naturally say they cannot contact anyone outside for security reasons.”
Reza nodded thoughtfully. Warning the Ayatollahs about a strike by the Israelis would not only be credible, but much more likely to work than trying to scare them with an attack by the Saudis.
“If you agree with this concept, I will have a building near the Assembly of Experts Secretariat secured and prepared. I have already identified one with a large below-ground level that I believe will do nicely.”
Now Bijan hesitated.
“If the Ayatollahs prove difficult to control, or vote to select anyone other than you as Supreme Leader, more drastic steps may be required. I suggest we wire the ‘bomb shelter’ with explosives in such a way that after detonation, the building would appear to have been struck from the air. We can then blame their deaths on either the Saudis or the Israelis, depending on which appears to be more credible at the time. You can then continue as Acting Supreme Leader until a new Assembly of Experts can be selected. By you, of course.”
Looking at Reza’s expression, for a moment Bijan feared he may have gone too far. Then he relaxed, as Reza’s expression became more thoughtful.
Reza shrugged. “I don’t want to take such an extreme step unless there is no alternative. Some of the Ayatollahs are good men, who I will be able to count as allies in moving Iran forward on the correct path. But, there are those like Sayyid Vahid Turani who must be stopped at any cost.”