172: Chapter 169 The Official Residence in Tehran

March 13, 1982, Tehran, the residence of the Supreme Leader.

Reza sat opposite the Supreme Leader.

The Supreme Leader was drinking tea. He did not speak immediately.

Then, he put down his cup.

"Reza," he said, "over the past two months, you have done many things."

"Yes," Reza said.

"You exposed Beheshti," the Supreme Leader said, "you executed more than forty traitors. You defeated Iraq's air raids. You destroyed Iraq's transportation system. You gave Iran the advantage in the war."

"Yes."

"However," the Supreme Leader said, "in the process of doing these things, you have also become very powerful."

Reza did not answer.

"You now control Iran's intelligence system," the Supreme Leader said, "control a part of the Revolutionary Guard, control the defense industry, control diplomatic decisions, and control the command of the war."

"This is all for the war," Reza said.

"I know," the Supreme Leader said, "but what about after the war ends?"

Reza was silent.

"After the war ends," the Supreme Leader said, "what do you intend to do?"

Reza thought for a moment.

"I will return to my previous job," he said, "I am an engineer. I will go back to doing engineering."

"Really?" the Supreme Leader said, "Can you let go of this power?"

"I can," Reza said.

The Supreme Leader looked into Reza's eyes.

He was judging whether Reza was lying.

Reza looked straight at him.

"I did not do these things for power," Reza said, "I did these things because Iran needed them. If Iran no longer needs me, I will leave."

The Supreme Leader was silent for a moment.

Then he nodded.

"Good," he said, "I believe you."

But Reza could tell that the Supreme Leader did not fully believe him.

"There is one more thing," the Supreme Leader said, "Saddam Hussein will now find a way to kill you."

"I know."

"I will send my own guards to protect you," the Supreme Leader said.

Reza was stunned for a moment.

"The Supreme Leader's guards?" he said, "Those are your personal bodyguards."

"Yes," the Supreme Leader said, "I am sending them to protect you."

Reza understood.

The Supreme Leader was not just trying to protect him.

The Supreme Leader also wanted to monitor him.

The Supreme Leader's guards would become the eyes and ears around Reza.

"Thank you," Reza said.

He had no other choice. If he refused, the Supreme Leader would suspect him.

"Good," the Supreme Leader said, "then we will decide it this way."

The meeting was over.

Reza walked out of the residence.

He sat in the car.

The car drove towards the airport.

He was going back to Ahvaz.

In the car, he was thinking.

The Supreme Leader's guards would make him safer.

But they would also make him lose some freedom of movement.

He had to act more carefully.

He turned on his phone and made a call to Karimi.

"Begin," he said.

"Begin what?" Karimi asked.

"The plan to attack the Chemical weapons factory," Reza said, "execute it starting tonight."

"Tonight?"

"Yes," Reza said, "we don't have any more time."

The call ended.

Reza looked out the window.

He knew that starting tonight, the war would enter a new phase.

A more intense phase.

A phase of life and death.

...

March 13, 1982, 8:00 PM.

Airbase in western Iran.

Colonel Hamid was giving a final briefing to the pilots.

"Tonight we have ten bombers participating in the mission," he said, "the target is the Chemical weapons factory in Mosul, Iraq. This is a mission that goes deep into Iraqi territory."

"How do we enter Iraq?" a pilot asked.

"We will fly along the Turkey-Iraq border," Colonel Hamid said, "we will fly at a low altitude to avoid Iraq's radar. We will approach Mosul from the north."

"Then how do we come back?"

Colonel Hamid was silent for a moment.

"You cannot come back," he said, "the bombers only have enough fuel for a one-way trip."

The pilots did not speak.

They already knew. But hearing the Colonel say it himself was different.

"After dropping the bombs," Colonel Hamid continued, "you must try your best to fly toward the Kurdish region in northern Iraq. There, we have already established a rescue network. After you parachute, the Kurds will find you and send you back to Iran."

"What if we are captured by the Iraqis?"

"You will be prisoners of war," Colonel Hamid said, "the Iranian government will strive for your release through the International Red Cross."

The pilots nodded.

They all knew this was a dangerous mission.

But they all volunteered to participate.

They were all doing it for Iran.

"Any other questions?" Colonel Hamid asked.

"No," the pilots said.

"Then let us begin," Colonel Hamid said, "take off at 10:00 PM tonight."

10:00 PM.

Ten Iranian bombers took off.

They flew along the Iran-Turkey border and entered Turkish airspace.

Turkey's air traffic controllers detected them. But they did not report it to Iraq.

Turkey maintained a superficial neutrality in the war. But in reality, Turkey was more sympathetic to Iran.

The bombers flew through Turkish airspace and entered northern Iraq.

They were flying at a low altitude, only two hundred meters from the ground.

Iraq's radar did not detect them.

At the same time, in western Iran, at the Scud missile base.

Twenty Scud missiles were loaded onto the launch vehicles.

Each missile was aimed at a different target.

Two Chemical weapons factories near Baghdad, each with eight missiles.

Plus the backup strike on the Mosul factory, four missiles.

A total of twenty.

11:00 PM.

The countdown began.

11:59 PM.

The first missile launched.

Twenty missiles launched in succession.

They streaked across the night sky, flying toward Iraq.