134: Chapter 131 The Problem of Air Raids

Hassan looked over the hand-drawn map again.

"Launching from within Iran could hit those coordinates," he said, "but the precision isn't enough. A target as small as a barn might be missed. If we use ground Special Forces to enter Iraq, the distance is too great. Eighty kilometers north of Tikrit is beyond our infiltration capabilities; the furthest we can reach is the area around Nasiriyah."

"What about an airstrike?"

"The problem with an airstrike is that once we bomb it, Saddam Hussein will immediately know we have intelligence on that location. Jassim's connection will be severed, and the other eleven launchers will immediately relocate. We will never be able to find them again."

Reza ran this deduction through his mind.

Hassan was right. If they took out these three, the other eleven would vanish. If they didn't, these three would remain a looming threat, but they would also serve as a coordinate for continuous monitoring, through which more information could be extracted.

"Don't strike," Reza said, "but I want continuous monitoring. Can Jassim periodically confirm that those three are still in their original positions?"

"He isn't a professional. This kind of constant surveillance carries a high risk for him—"

"Tell him it's not about him standing guard. It's about confirming once every two weeks. Use his channels to have his people pass by and take a look. If the launchers are still there, give us a signal; if they've been moved, notify us immediately."

"He can do that," Hassan said, "but what if he gets caught—"

"He knows the risks; he's been doing this all along," Reza said. "I wouldn't send someone who doesn't understand the risks to do something like this."

Hassan folded up the map and prepared to get up.

Reza said: "There is one more thing."

Hassan sat back down.

"That Ibrahim Nasser, who keeps advocating for continuing the fight," Reza said, "I want to know if there is anyone around him we can use."

Hassan paused, then understood the meaning of the words: "You want to plant someone around him?"

"I want to see if there is anyone already in place," Reza said. "It doesn't necessarily have to be an active plant. If there are people around him who are dissatisfied with Saddam Hussein, old rivals, or creditors, all can be considered."

"I need time to investigate that."

"No rush, but it must be investigated. Nasser is the most radical of the five corps commanders, and his movements are the most important to me—if he starts colluding within the military, the ceasefire agreement will be nothing but a piece of waste paper."

Hassan stood up and tucked the map into his pocket: "Within a week, I will give you a preliminary report."

After he left, Reza looked over Jassim's list again, then wrote five names in a dark blue notebook, following each name with a word:

Mahmoud Shahwan—Waiting.

Ali Zaid—Fence-sitting.

Qasim Yasin—Waiting.

Taha Ghanim—Waiting.

Ibrahim Nasser—Dangerous.

He drew a line under Nasser's name, then wrote three words beneath the line: "Watch him closely."

That evening, Karimi entered with an unpleasant look on his face.

"A message came from Tehran," he said. "President Mousavi has submitted a proposal to the Supreme Defense Council. It states that during the ceasefire, all military intelligence operations involving ceasefire zones require prior approval from the Presidential Palace."

Reza put down the document in his hand.

"The original text," he said.

Karimi handed him the telegram.

Reza read it word by word.

The wording of this proposal was very skillful—it didn't directly say "restrict Reza's power," but instead used "standardizing the management of intelligence activities during the ceasefire." It sounded like strengthening the system, but in reality, it was inserting an approval process between him and Jassim.

Once this procedure was passed, Reza would have to report every piece of Jassim's intelligence to the Presidential Palace first, and could only initiate subsequent actions after the Presidential Palace approved it.

What did this mean?

It meant intelligence delays, it meant the risk of classified information leaking, and it meant that every move Reza made had to pass through Mousavi's eyes.

"He said he wouldn't beat around the bush when we met last time," Reza said, his voice flat.

"This proposal was drafted by his staff; it might not be his own intention," Karimi said. "It's also possible that someone in parliament is pushing it, and Mousavi is just going with the flow."

"Regardless of who is pushing it, if he signed it, it is his intention," Reza said. "Has the proposal passed?"

"Not yet. It has been submitted to the committee, and they will meet to discuss it next week."

Reza had one week.

He thought for about thirty seconds, then spoke: "Send a letter to Rafsanjani. I don't want him to block this proposal; I want him to forward a copy of it to Ayatollah Khomeini's office before the committee discusses it, with a note attached—the note should explain that if this proposal passes, it will reduce the response speed of Iran's frontline intelligence by more than sixty percent. Given that the Scud Missile threat has not yet been resolved, this is equivalent to imposing risks on the safety of frontline soldiers."

Karimi paused: "This is equivalent to bypassing Mousavi and going directly through the Ayatollah's channel."

"I know," Reza said, "but I am not trying to overturn this proposal; I am letting the Supreme Leader know the cost of this proposal. Ayatollah Khomeini is not ignorant of military affairs; he knows what intelligence delays mean, and he will have his own judgment."

"What if Ayatollah Khomeini does not intervene?"

"Then that means he supports this proposal, and that would be a different matter," Reza said. "Take this step first, then see the result."

Karimi wrote it down.

After he left, Reza sat back in his chair and read Mousavi's proposal again.

This was a game that was harder to handle than Jassim's intelligence—the former was an enemy with clear boundaries; the latter was someone within the same system with complex rules, and one could not confront them head-on.

Mousavi was a smart man, and the timing he chose was also very precise—during the ceasefire, with no battles and no emergencies, Reza had no justifiable reason to bypass the Presidential Palace.

But there was one thing Mousavi hadn't counted on: Reza had something he didn't—Jassim's connection, and the coordinates of those three Scud Missiles north of Tikrit.

As long as this threat remained, Reza had leverage.

The threat itself was his protection.