Flash fiction thread

[James G]

Victoria Crosses won in the years 2000 to 2019

British military personnel won six Victoria Crosses in the years 2000 to 2019 during a series of global engagements. Five of those were awarded posthumously.

Lance Corporal Neil Turner, a rifleman serving with the Green Howards in Kosovo, was killed in action during May 2001. The Green Howards were assigned as part of the peacekeeping force sent to that former part of Yugoslavia which was undergoing revolution against the rule of Serbia. International pressure had seen the Serbs withdraw and into the region went units such as the British Army’s Green Howards to keep the warring locals apart: ethnic Serbians remained in a portion of Kosovo. A situation arose where British soldiers, as well as peacekeepers from other European countries, found themselves engaged by not local Serbian militia as first believed but instead Serbian special forces sent into Kosovo. Rules of engagement were tight for the Green Howards and the political decisions behind that were deemed by the (later) Collins Inquiry to be behind the loss of life of Turner and others. Near to Mitrovica on May 31st, the patrol with which Turner was assigned came under fire in a pre-planned ambush. Machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades were used against the rifle section with which he was a part of leading to many deaths and injuries. A tactical withdrawal was attempted but it was one cut off by heavy fire. Turner was wounded alongside his comrades while they were pinned down and waiting on relief. To save the lives of his fellow soldiers, Turner came out of cover and charged forwards towards the nearest machine gun post operated by Serbian special forces. Shot again, he continued onwards and took the enemy under fire. Other surviving Green Howards joined in the fusillade breaking free from where they had been pinned down. They followed Turner to the better protection from fire which the captured machine gun pit provided. Three Serbians lay dead inside there, all killed by Turner: including one with his bayonet. He himself was mortally-wounded during that final attack where he silenced the machine gun and secured the position. Turner died before helicopter evacuation arrived. On the recommendation of his commanding officer, and with his actions witnessed by fellow soldiers whose lives were owed to his brave sacrifice, the Victoria Cross would be later awarded to Turner for valour in the face of the enemy.

Rifleman Ganju Thapa, with the Royal Gurkha Rifles, lost his life on active service during 2006. Thapa was killed when engaging the enemy on the sovereign soil of Brunei where the Gurkhas were fighting against cross-border incursions into that country by rebel units of the Royal Malaysian Army. Fighting took place between those Malayan traitors and British forces – the latter aiding both Brunei and the legitimate government in Kuala Lumpur – throughout the latter part of 2006 and the engagement near to Sukang in the middle of the jungle which took Thapa’s life occurred on November 16th. The patrol with what he was with came under fire in the jungle when they struck at a rebel encampment illegally inside Brunei from where raids had been launched outwards. The rebels fought back determinedly against the Gurkhas and trapped Thapa along with half a dozen others in a narrow ravine. With injured fellow riflemen around him, Thapa led a counterattack where he used hand grenades and then his Kukri to take on the enemy when he had no more ammunition on-hand for his rifle. Five rebels were killed singlehandedly by Thapa before he then sought to carry an injured man to safety. A sixth enemy soldier, previously hidden, emerged firing his rifle and Thapa was hit. His first instinct was to move his comrade to safety before he, with just his Kukri, and his courage too, crawled towards that opponent and overcame him. The blood loss from that bullet wound saw Thapa lose his life. Recommended for and then awarded the Victoria Cross, Thapa’s actions in the Brunei jungle will therefore not be forgotten by history.

Second Lieutenant William Cosgrove, a Royal Marine with 42 Commando, won his Victoria Cross during a firefight with the enemy in Guyana on July 6th 2009. The Venezuela War – a conflict between that nation and several European countries including Britain to help liberate Dutch islands off the coast – was extended in scope by Venezuelan actions across into neutral Guyana. Cosgrove’s unit (M Rifle Company) had missed the Anglo-Dutch recapture of Aruba and Curacao with his company being held aboard ship as a reaction force during those landings. Once the Venezuelans moved into Guyana, Royal Marines fought to defend that country’s sovereignty. Georgetown was overrun with the enemy and 42 Commando entered the country’s capital to try to stop it falling. During this, Cosgrove, assigned to command an anti-armour missile team, led an attack to defeat Venezuelan armoured vehicles firing on fellow Royal Marines in the middle of Georgetown. After two APCs were destroyed, and another knocked out of action, he went forward to collect prisoners and any tactical intelligence available. Artillery fire erupted ahead of a dismounted Venezuelan counterattack. Shot down, Cosgrove used a discarded enemy assault rifle to fire on the attackers and stop them from recovering their position. He held them off alone for a substantial period of time, being shot once more in the process but allowing for an evacuation of friendly casualties behind him before M Company units mounted their own move to finally put an end to enemy resistance. Cosgrove died on the street in Georgetown with enemy soldiers all around him who failed to achieve a breakthrough. His Victoria Cross was presented early the next year to his widow at a ceremony in Buckingham Palace by Queen Elizabeth.

Petty Officer Adam Duncan was serving aboard the Royal Navy frigate HMS Sutherland when it was tied alongside in Mombasa during 2012. The warship was on a goodwill visit to Kenya while conducting anti-piracy and anti-terror operations in the Arabian Sea. A terrorist force attacked the Sutherland while it was in port with the intention of killing sailors and possibly destroying the ship too. On duty as part of the guard force, Duncan was one of the first to react to the presence of armed assailants on the quayside yet was forced to wait for confirmation to open fire during to the rules of engagement while in a friendly port. When finally given authorisation, Duncan fired upon the enemy and then led forward a party of fellow sailors to clear the quayside less they recover and make a second attempt at storming his ship. In doing so, he rescued Kenyan soldiers trapped under enemy fire and then went towards where the enemy had fallen back towards. Two of his fellow sailors were killed in the engagement but onwards Duncan fought, shooting a terrorist armed with a man-portable missile aimed at the Sutherland before that man could open fire. The clearing of the enemy, almost single-handedly at the end, was widely witnessed including by Kenyan soldiers but also his own commanding officer from the bridge of the Sutherland. An explosion then occurred where a dying terrorist detonated an unseen explosive belt which resulted in Duncan being killed. The citation on Duncan’s Victoria Cross details his bravery on the morning of September 20th 2012 extensively.

Captain Philip Montgomery was with the Parachute Regiment when it fought in Iran during the American-led invasion of that country in 2014. He served with 2 PARA during their capture of Bushehr and then fought inland towards the city of Shiraz when enemy units made a desperate last stand surrounded by civilian non-combatants. Montgomery was involved in the hunting through the outskirts of Shiraz against the enemy who had fortified themselves into improvised firing positions. When a platoon of Paras lost their commander to a sniper on April 1st, Montgomery stepped into the breech and led a flanking manoeuvre of dismounted men to get behind the enemy and root them out. In the middle of this, an American helicopter flying above was shot down by Iranian forces and crashed right in the middle of that battle. Montgomery re-directed his attention towards recovering survivors from the crash site all the while as that downed helicopter drew the attention of previously hidden enemy. Montgomery’s Paras took on the Iranians with their commander leading from the front. In a struggle next to the air wreck, Montgomery was surprised by an Iranian soldier and the two of them engaged in a struggle where it was hand-to-hand. Montgomery was stabbed by a bayonet but overcame his opponent and then used his rifle to clear away other enemy soldiers. His Paras rushed towards him and they rescued the injured aircrew. Montgomery lost his life as a result of that bayonet wound though despite furious efforts from a fellow Para to save him. In receiving his Victoria Cross for valour, the deceased Montgomery was also decorated by the United States as well for his brave actions in saving their own trapped personnel.

Flight Sergeant Susan Reed survived without a scratch on her from her clash with the enemy in Latvia on January 12th 2018. The RAF airwoman won a Victoria Cross for her action though when she, serving in a non-combat role, found herself fighting for her life and those of others with her during the attack on Riga Airport undertaken by ethnic Russian separatists fighting to rob Latvia of its sovereignty amid the Baltic Unrest. British forces in the Baltic States were there on a peacekeeping mission and the RAF had established itself at two airbases in Latvia and Lithuania. There were soldiers from the RAF Regiment assigned for security duties though with the ‘Rock Apes’ being stretched thin globally (Iran being the biggest manpower drain), RAF ground personnel reinforced them on guard duty during the course of their own important tasks. Riga Airport was hit by mortars and an armed assault. Reed fought as others in uniform did that night in the darkness during a confusing situation where the enemy strength was unknown and it appeared to be bigger than it actually was. Using her rifle, she helped to defend a parked transport aircraft in RAF colours against opponents carrying satchel charges before being blown clear when one of those charges detonated some distance back from the aircraft. Enemy personnel rushed forward, past her on the ground and towards stunned & wounded other Britons. Reed took them under fire from behind, killing several with carefully aimed shots, and then moved forward to secure any prisoners. This action was witnessed by injured comrades and also a German Luftwaffe officer who would provide supporting testimony to her immense bravery. One prisoner was taken alive by Reed and she disabled him using her rifle butt – a good old fashioned wallop – rather than shooting him even when he was armed. This capture of a live prisoner, discovered to be a wanted man with connections to Russian intelligence agencies, allowed for definitive proof to be gained of Moscow’s involvement in the Baltic Unrest throughout 2017-2018 after his interrogation exposed that. Reed was the first (and so far only) woman to received a Victoria Cross in something that was domestically controversial due to the geo-political circumstances of the British military mission on the Baltics. Her act of valour in the face of the enemy was the subject of much public interest afterwards too.

[James G]

The Northwood shootout

On the night of July 16th, the ongoing global war scare originating in the Baltic, though with roots in Moscow following the death of the President a few months earlier, brought forth a shootout in Northwood. Here on the northern edges of London, next to PJHQ Northwood, which was Britain’s military command nerve centre, armed men shot at each other. They believed they were firing some of the first shots of a war.


Two weeks beforehand, in the aftermath of the military takeover in the Russian capital, the commando team had begun to assemble. They flew into Britain alone and in civilian attire using false identities. They stayed in private residences across London in rented rooms where each told a tale of being in the country for work purposes. None of them said that they were from Russia: other countries were listed on their passports and work documentation. They didn’t meet each other until today when public transport took them to near the military base at Northwood where a takeaway was located on a small but busy high street. Each man wandered inside until the final count reached sixteen. None of them came back out again after going around the counter – without saying anything to the staff – and into the back. There was a tunnel accessed through a trapdoor. It wasn’t very deep nor the most-safest of constructions, but it allowed them to move (laying down on a trolley and pulled along by a rope) unseen across a distance of over five hundred yards beneath suburban England. They each emerged in the basement of a house, one which backed onto some woodland outside a security fence. In there they stayed throughout the rest of the day’s hours of sunlight. Weapons and equipment were broken out of storage and uniforms issued. Their commander had been the first one through the tunnel – he hadn’t enjoyed the experience! – and he briefed them all on their task for tonight. War with NATO was imminent and the Motherland was imperilled. They would strike here in a surprise attack on enemy soil as part of that conflict. An escape would then be made, one which was carefully planned out and included using this hidden route.

Before then, they waited for the go-signal. It may or may not come but this commando team had to be ready in case it did.


An attached American intelligence officer from the CIA didn’t got the joke made by the MI-5 people about that takeaway being ‘like the Tardis’. The pop culture reference had to be explained to him, ruining the gag. He understood but didn’t see why it was so funny. Everyone else did though, including the British military personnel in the bedsit on the opposite side of the high street. His only thought was that those were enemy soldiers while the people who ran that takeaway were spies who would get their just deserts too. Regardless, none of this really mattered. The intelligence report had been correct. The Russians turned up incognito and were moving into pre-attack position. They had infiltrated Britain and were staging ready to make an attack. Without knowing any details, the CIA spook was still aware that more of them were elsewhere – in Britain, a couple of other Western European countries and also in his own country – doing the same. These ones here were going to get a surprise though. The tunnel and their staging base at that anonymous looking house were all under surveillance. Moreover, at the target of their planned raid, there was a ‘welcoming committee’ waiting for them. The American spent the rest of the day waiting just like those Russians did. He left the bedsit along the MI-5 people and those two military officers. There was a local community centre (a glorified church hall) where many more British uniformed personnel were waiting. Soldiers with the Special Air Service and the Special Reconnaissance Regiment joined the American in receiving their own briefing. Those with guns were hyped up and prepared for any eventuality.

Orders from on high were for Operation EXCALIBUR to go into effect only if the Russians made the first move… either here or elsewhere in the world.


Unbeknown to those waiting for a fight to the north of London, an air clash occurred above the Gulf of Finland.

In an accident, though one brought about by the most extreme tension, shots were exchanged between a pair of RAF fighters and a flight of Russian Air Force jets. A Typhoon was shot down and so too was a MiG-35. Those on each side felt justified in opening fire on the other. The two surviving aircraft were pulled back by tactical commanders aboard distant AWACS aircraft. In Moscow, like in NATO capitals, leaders had made it clear to subordinates that no conflict was sought despite all the tension. Interests would be defended, aggressively so, but no one was to shoot first.

Well… that had just happened. Lives had been lost. Messages flashed outwards apparently confirming an unprovoked attack made by the other side which had been responded to. Further information was sought by those leading countries armed to the teeth and with men prepped to fight. This delayed a further response almost everywhere. Too much was at stake to overreact without knowing everything that had occurred in the skies between Estonia and Russia. Such a cautious approach as this was taken in Moscow and Washington. That wasn’t the case in London.

Meeting below the Cabinet Office, the Prime Minister was with the COBRA emergency committee. The subject of those armed commandos waiting to strike at Northwood – and others elsewhere in Britain – was under discussion when the news flash came from the Baltic. The Prime Minister made a decision, one taken with what he regarded as justification. A go order was given to EXCALIBUR. Those Russian commandos were to be engaged. He issued that instruction with support from his ministerial colleagues and officials. Elsewhere in the world, it would not be something that gained such support.


The Russians had a watch active while they waited to strike. Three of them monitored the areas around their assault launch point ahead of their move to hit Northwood. However, they, and their commander too, had too much confidence in their position. They believed that no one would attack them here and their focus was on their upcoming mission that they were waiting for the order to undertake. When what hit them did, they had no chance of stopping it. The SAS had practised this assault – a mock-up house to the exact same specifications had been built several days ago at Stirling Lines barracks – and it was something which they excelled at generally. Emerging out of the darkness, a couple of dozen armed soldiers hit multiple entrance points simultaneously and burst through them. Flash-bang grenades came into the house ahead of the SAS. Gunshots came next. Russian commandos either with weapons in their hands, or deemed to be moving towards them, were shot. Those were kill shots too, not ones to wound.

It was all over in less than a minute. The previous silence in the suburban street was shattered and wouldn’t return. Neighbours rushed to windows to try to see what was going on. Police vehicles, and then a pair of ambulances too, arrived though with those from them only allowed to come forward when given the all clear by the senior on-scene operational commander. They went into what was a ‘kill house’.

EXACLIBUR achieved complete success. The enemy commando team was eliminated as a fighting force. Thirteen of the Russians were killed and the other three captured. In return, two SAS troopers were hurt (one shot and the other stabbed) and others sustained various less serious injuries. There was a wealth of tactical intelligence gained. The prisoners were quickly taken away – in a helicopter no less – and would be soon joined for interrogation by the non-combatants picked up at that takeaway: the support network for their mission was rolled up along with them due to the British having a complete intelligence picture of the whole thing.


That Russian commando team had orders to stand ready to assault PJHQ Northwood. Those who drew up the planned operation which they were due to commence on cue wanted to see them storm the facility and cause mayhem. Enemy personnel were to be killed and satchel charges with explosive devices within were to be laid. Command-&-control for British forces operating abroad would have suffered a serious blow should the assault have taken place: it would have cost many lives too. No one gave the final go ahead for it though. It was prepared but didn’t actually occur. None of the other similar planned strikes received final strike orders either. As far as the British Prime Minister was concerned, putting a stop to this planned attack using force was the right thing to do. Those were foreign soldiers on British soil and he authorised EXACLIBUR to hit them – plus another strike on a commando team being watched near an RAF base in Lincolnshire – with what his Attorney General said was completely justified. EXCALIBUR wasn’t pre-emptive either: Russian forces had already shot down a British fighter (killing its pilot in the process) while readying to launch an invasion of the three NATO countries in the Baltic.

That invasion of Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania didn’t happen though. There were no further military clashes in the Baltic nor anywhere else either. A phone call between the US President and the Russian Army general who’d set himself up in the Kremlin took place. They didn’t resolve their differences yet they did agree that neither would authorise any military action unless they were struck at first. A war in the Baltic, one which many feared would go global within minutes, didn’t occur. Yet, the Northwood shootout did.

News of the incident was suppressed. Using long-established emergency legislation, the British Government managed to silence the media on the matter. The public didn’t find out what when on with the lethal gunfight. Within a week, after having his arm twisted by Washington, the Prime Minister released the trio of Russian commandos captured alive outside Northwood along with nine more Russian nationals caught inside Britain on the night of July 16th too. They were flown to a Turkish airbase on an RAF transport and turned over to the Turkish military authorities who, in turn, passed them onwards to a Russian military liaison with their own plane waiting. The bodies of the dead went on the same two flights to take those corpses from Britain to Russia via Turkey. There were twenty-one bodies: all foreign commandos caught preparing for war but taken by surprise at the last minute. There would be internal recriminations within Russia because it was clear that they, and others in other countries, had been so thoroughly compromised like they had been.

While war with the West was averted, something in Russia’s best interests, they suffered all of those dead. The SAS soldiers who hit their commandos did so with everything they had: less lives could have been lost if things had been done differently. Britain was almost at war at that moment though and those involved did what they did under orders to wipe out an armed opponent just as they should. The Prime Minister was surprised at the last minute Moscow-Washington talks but it was a good surprise. Other armed clashes wouldn’t have been as one-sided and the conflict could have gone to the nuclear level if things had spiralled further out of control. He knew full well though that while he could keep matters quiet at home, they would be eager for payback over in Russia. How could they not want to get their revenge? The thinking there, the Prime Minister believed, would be that their ‘innocent’ military personnel had been massacred and there had to be a response given.

Time would tell whether that revenge would be forthcoming.

[James G]

The rise and fall of the American People’s Republic

The Second American Revolution erupted in Detroit on May 1st 1932. Violence spiralled out of control in that industrial city in the heart of the Mid-West and the fall-out would bring down the government of the United States of America before the year was out. Communist victory would be the outcome as revolution won the battle for control of the country. President Herbert Hoover fled the nation before he could be voted out of office while his sure-fire challenger Franklin D. Roosevelt lost his life when New York City fell to the Red Militia that October. Washington was completely burnt to the ground in the fighting where civil war raged during the revolutionary period though the planned scouring of the nation’s capital was only one of many scenes of fantastical destruction which occurred during that year. Close to half a million lives were lost during the replacement of the capitalist United States of America with the communist American People’s Republic. The country was transformed with haste in the aftermath of the fighting’s conclusion just before that Christmas. There were changes everywhere including the dissolution of state governments & national institutions as well as the renouncement of territorial possessions outside of North America. Those in charge in New York – where the new republic made their capital – built something new from the ashes of the old. They set about transforming the American way of life and creating the utopia which they had promised the people. Those who didn’t want to live in such a society faced revolutionary justice in the form of the Red Terror. The American People’s Republic began its tenure as it would go on: drenched in the blood of enemies.

Such events shook the world, more so than the Russian Revolution fifteen years earlier. The effects were felt across the globe. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 and the subsequent Great Depression hadn’t only affected America leading to such a situation where the government could be overthrown as fast as it was by the masses of the desperate duped into believing that those with guns and revolutionary zeal could deliver upon all of their promises. This blow from America to the economies of others was near fatal in many places. International trade with the former United States ceased leading to financial disaster elsewhere. Hoover had escaped to Canada and there were other Americans who left their new country too. A government-in-exile was formed first in Ottawa before eventually moving to Hawaii. That Pacific island chain was officially disowned by Chairman Edward Sommers (America’s dictator in all but name) in New York but wasn’t gobbled up like other territories by the Japanese – such as the Philippines – or the British & Canadians – who placed the Panama Canal and Alaska respectively under their protection – were. From Honolulu, there was an assertion that the United States of America still existed and the government there was under Hoover’s Vice President Charles Curtis who claimed to be the legitimate president. The facts on the ground though were that Sommers and the American Communist Party had all of the power and their regime extended from coast-to-coast across North America. Foreign governments tried to have relations with them despite the manner in which they had seized power and Sommers’ actions since then with his Red Terror against all opposition, real and imagined. America turned inwards though as rebellions flared up and the latest initiative to build the promised utopia took the attention of those in New York: the rest of the world was ignored. Even the Soviet Union was shunned by isolationist Sommers.

Through 1933 and into the next year too, there continued to be rebellious flare-ups nationwide. The communists had won country far too rapidly – it had never been a true civil war – and much of the Red Militia had been demobilised once victory had come leaving large numbers of civilians armed despite post-revolution laws to the contrary. The writ of government from New York didn’t have the desired effect across parts of the South and the West. People’s Commissioners were murdered by rebels. Crops were set alight and factories blown up. Strikes took place and successionists declared themselves dictators themselves. Each and every time, Sommers’ forces would eventually take control but it was never an easy process. In areas cleared of rebellion, the Red Terror would subsequently take place to try and pacify the people but that only inflamed tensions even more. The security forces would move on elsewhere and the trouble would start again. It would be late in 1934 when Sommers finally had enough. His government would no longer accept this situation where all that they’d built was threatened. The Red Militia was increased in size through forced conscription (when the call for volunteers was poorly answered) and the following January saw the country swept of the last vestiges of resistance to the regime in New York. Observers had thought that the Red Terror was outrageous in 1932 but they hadn’t imagined it could be as bad as it was come 1935. Rampaging armies ravaged large areas of the rural parts of the country. They slaughtered entire towns and went through the mountains, the plains and the swamps killing all in sight. Massive population transfers occurred in the aftermath among those people who were left. Unwittingly, yet in something that only a fool couldn’t foresee, Sommers set the country up for a famine. Workers in urban areas who filled their quotas in factories couldn’t manufacture in them wheat & corn which needed growing in the abandoned fields nor tend to the mass of livestock which was no longer being bred & prepared for slaughter. Farming families were some of the worst hit by the Red Terror and those who weren’t killed fled either to the cities of tried to make their way out of the American People’s Republic to either Canada or Mexico: Hawaii wasn’t an option and Curtis’ government there had decreasing influence.

Americans started to starve. Sommers’ regime tried to rectify this later in the year but it was a situation beyond repair. Too much damage was done to rural areas and the people who had fed the nation. Importing food was impossible due to the isolationism employed through the years and the hostility from abroad. A solution was eventually presented to him from one of his many lackeys: this time it wasn’t something ripped from the pages of works by Marx as was usually the case. The immediate neighbours of the American People’s Republic, Canada and Mexico, would be forced to give aid. The huge Red Militia would make sure that neither refused… or had the chance to either. Even if this hadn’t caused the war which it did, it was doomed effort. Such a rescue scheme was never going to work. American people couldn’t be fed by the armed theft of food from neighbouring countries! Sommers attempted it though and thus brought his regime up against force of arms from abroad.


It would later be called the Seven Nation Army. Soldiers from several countries (the United States of America from its Hawaiian base included) defended Canada and Mexico in a two year conflict which eventually saw them move to invade and liberate America. Britain and France – each concerned by German actions in Europe at the same time – fought alongside those two invaded nations with their coalition joined by Australia and New Zealand too.

In 1936, the main task was to push the Americans back over their own borders. Complete dominance of the seas, and increasingly the skies, helped the Seven Nation Army but when it came to men on the ground, the Red Militia had the numbers. Sommers was able to throw huge numbers of conscripted soldiers into the fighting to try and take over his neighbours. It was munities among them that eventually saw the collapse of the Canadian Front that summer – Mexico was a different matter – allowing for a counteroffensive to push the Red Militia out of Canada. British and French forces secured Florida later in the year and their naval strength helped ease the pressure of their allies fighting on the Mexico Front. Sommers would pull out the majority of his men from Mexico at the beginning of 1937 to stem the tide of the coming offensive down from Ontario into the Mid-West. The Royal Navy steamed into New York Bay in February to shell New York and there was also an amphibious assault made in the Seattle area too. When that city in the Pacific North-West was captured, Curtis’ forces also arrived ‘back home’. It was a token force but an important piece of propaganda. The United States of America was trying to reclaim its territory, assisted by allies who had committed themselves to no territorial concessions from their participation in this conflict… well, only in North America though, not elsewhere in the Caribbean and the Pacific.

When the main offensive on the Canadian Front started in the Spring, that quickly became the American Front. The border was crossed in many places and crushing defeats were incurred among the Red Militia. Further munities broke out and then there was the defection of a large number from the control of Sommers too. That broke open the battlefield in Minnesota leading to British Army tanks going south towards Chicago from the rear while ‘new divisions’ of the United States Army followed them. Detroit fell to the Canadians while the French secured Maine and pushed deeper into New England. Victories won by the Red Militia in Montana and also what was once Upstate New York couldn’t offset the tide of general defeat. There was an expansion of the invader’s control on the flanks in the Pacific North-West and New England, but the main drive into the Mid-West saw Chicago reached just ahead of May Day. The revolution had been five years beforehand but now the American People’s Republic was falling apart. In the Appalachians and Texas, the rebels came out again. There weren’t many people left who were willing to rise up but they bravely did. The flag of the United States, the old Stars & Stripes, was used as a banner by large armed groups who sought to liberate themselves with one last effort against the hated regime in New York who had drenched the country in blood throughout the last half decade.

Those rebellions were important factors in the success of the last offensive made by the Seven Nation Army. They distracted Sommers and his cohorts from where all attention should have been: in Upstate New York and across Indiana. ANZAC troops helped break open the way through Albany and there was the presence of those defectors from the Red Militia who fought for the United States at Indianapolis. However, it was British, French & Canadian troops who did the bulk of the fighting in ripping open the enemy lines. They were joined by tanks and aircraft in opening gaps for the offensive to go ahead. The Americans collapsed nearly everywhere in a crescendo. The Red Militia was beaten. Hungry bellies and, at that stage ammunition shortages, were just as responsible for their defeat as the invader’s strength. The Ohio River was crossed in August and the Hudson Valley was entered too. Back to New York Bay the Royal Navy came while French warships supported the landing in the ruins of the abandoned Washington by a party of soldiers under their Stars & Stripes banner. The American People’s Republic was now coming apart. Most of the country still was in Sommers’ hands in theory but the war was lost by where invading armies were and rebellion seemingly everywhere else. Soldiers started laying down their arms and a tide of successionists sprung up. Many of the latter were opposed to the old order of the United States just as they were the communists, but for the time being they fought against Sommers forces. It was September 2nd when New York was reached by British and Canadian troops as they came down from the north. Sommers was still in the city and he intended to fight to the end. Others in his regime had fled but he stayed in his capital intending to man the ramparts. Someone shot him in the back of the head the next morning with the identity of his killer unknown to history. Despite that assassination, there was still a fight for the city which lasted several weeks: men of Sommers’ regime fought on there long after his death. Elsewhere though, there was an absence of real resistance to the liberation of America apart from south of the Ohio. Those invading made sure that they continued the message of ‘liberation’ wherever they went. Military rule had to be enforced though and there were few ‘friendly locals’ to appoint to positions of power to legitimise it in the eyes of the public. In Hawaii through the years, Curtis’ regime had bled supporters and so there weren’t many people they could bring with them when they returned home. Soldiers with the Seven Nation Army had many engagements with armed locals who fought not for the dead Sommers but against foreign occupation.

The American People’s Republic lasted until November. Boston and Philadelphia fell without a shot but there were Red Militia forces who established themselves along the Mississippi and down into Dixie. They retreated from the Appalachians and were surrounded on all sides as well as facing a French attack coming up from Florida to hit them in the rear. Only until defeat was inflicted upon them did the last communist forces fight. It was all over following the Battle of Montgomery on November 20th. The last organised resistance was finished off there in Dixie, some time after almost the whole of the West ended up under United States control following defections and desertions too. President Curtis was in Washington despite there being nothing there to resemble the capital it once was. With the war over, and foreign armies soon to be departing (the British and French would join with the United States in making veiled threats to force the vengeful Mexicans out of Arizona and New Mexico), now the re-established United States of America had to set about the long and painful process of putting itself back together again. Anyone who thought that was easy was stupider than Chairman Sommers had been two years beforehand.

[lordroel]

Sept 23, 2020 18:17:25 GMT James G said:

It would later be called the Seven Nation Army.

Cannot resits.

[stevep]

   James G ,

  Interesting scenario.  Not sure a communist - as opposed to populist - revolution could be that successful but would definitely be very bloody.  Would be interesting looking into the aftermath.  Assuming that Hitler's rise to power isn't butterflied - which is unlikely as a communist uprising in the US would further the hard right agenda elsewhere - things have probably gone similar to OTL and possibly a bit faster as once Britain and France are committed in N America they can't really intervene in Germany.  Although if this also means no objection to Italy's attack of Ethiopia that might also mean Mussolini sees Hitler as a rival and possibly you might have seen a war over a Nazi attempt to take over Austria, which is unlikely to be as one sided as many people might think.

  Also its likely, with the US collapsing and Britain and France distracted, that Japan, boosted in confidence by this and securing the Philippines have gone into China and without support from the west probably done somewhat better than OTL.  The KMT is likely depending even more on Soviet support than OTL.

  As such, unless Italy and Germany have weakened each other over Austria it probably looks bad for the democratic powers.  Nazi Germany is emerging as a threat and Japan already is clearly one.  Also the US isn't going to be a significant factor in foreign affairs for a while between the devastation and loss of life and the fact that the one policy that the US will probably continue with from Sommers time is deep isolationism. 

  However there are some pluses.  The lack of a US competitor for ~5 years might have made recovery for other nations a bit easier and the main western powers have recent military experience, along with a clear success, which could make them more willing to stand up to the Nazis, or at least have a better military due to a larger British army and actual military experience.  Plus the military build up, accelerated by the war in the US, will have seen more investment in their home countries rather than in building military capacity inside the US.  Also Canada especially and probably some other locations would have seen a boost in population from refugees from the US and at least some of them are likely to stay. 

  The USN is likely to be a mess as anything which escaped to Hawaii or elsewhere have had ~5 years without real support and anything left behind has probably been dilapidated followed by being hammered by the allies during the war.  However its probably that events in the US and growing concerns elsewhere means that British construction of new ships probably started earlier.  The costs of the war will be significant but then war debts to the US from WWI will be cancelled almost certainly and there might be some compensation for assets seized by Sommer's regime.  However still likely to be a tough period for the democratic world unless Germany is crippled quickly.  Plus depending on the exact level of devastation and deaths and how divided the restored US is it will bounce back.  Probably take at least a decade however.

  Steve

[James G]

They Shall Have Their War



Iran’s Supreme Leader dead at Age 90
De facto head of the Islamic Republic said to have had heart attack
World leaders react with condolences despite long-standing tensions between Iran the West

Sky News station rolling news ticker on March 14th



Footage of rioting inside Tehran
Iranian Revolution #2
Hafte-e-Tir Square gunfire
Please stop the soldiers from killing our brothers and sisters

Titles of four of the top ten trending YouTube videos worldwide on March 17th



A spokesman for Iran’s Guardian Council has demanded that the West doesn’t intervene with Iran’s ‘internal issues’. This remark comes alongside comments made from the former Leader of the Labour Party last night denouncing what he called the current Government’s desire for conflict with Iran. Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports from Tehran suggest that the Guardian Council has decided upon a new national religious leader.

Extract from the Midday news broadcast by Times Radio station on March 21st



Horror on the M4!
Bomb blast kills American diplomat travelling within official vehicle on London’s Westway: motive and perpetrators unknown

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Mirror newspaper on March 30th



The US diplomat murdered last month in Britain’s capital was CIA Station Chief in London. There are many questions to answer as to why she was killed, and by who, as well as why the details of her position were covered up with lies until this organisation has revealed them.

Comment within an exposé piece on the Breitbart News website on April 8th



Gulf Crisis reignited as Iranian and US forces undertake mock engagements at sea & in the air
Iran’s new Supreme Leader declares that the Persian Gulf is ‘Iranian territory’ which will be defended until ‘the end’

Two article headlines for the New York Times website on April 23rd



Britain’s biggest warship sets sail for the Middle East!
HMS Queen Elizabeth II, the Royal Navy’s largest ever aircraft carrier, departs Portsmouth bound for the Persian Gulf as Iran showdown continues to expand

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Sun newspaper on April 30th



Oil tanker BURNS in the Gulf: missile attack from Iran feared responsible

Headline of an article on the Mail Online website on May 6th



There are reports coming from Central Command, responsible for U.S. forces in the Middle East, that ‘live firing clashes’ have occurred overnight in the Gulf. No American casualties have been reported but there have been Iranian losses to aircraft and, possibly, a pair of armed speedboats too. A statement from the Pentagon is expected on the hour.

Remarks made on breaking news by a Fox News newsreader on May 9th



They tried to kill KIDS!
Failed attempt by terrorists targeted a party of schoolchildren with their COWARDLY bomb effort against the Eurostar in the Chunnel

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Express newspaper on May 18th



President, Secretary of State both talk with US Congressional leadership concerning possible action against Iran
Foreign Secretary privately warns Cabinet that any US-led conflict with Iran will be ‘a bloodbath’; PM’s spokesperson refuses to confirm nor deny such comments

Two article headlines for the Times website on May 24th



Reports of serious incident on Parliamentary Estate
Met. Police and London Ambulance Service responding to incident in Westminster
‘It was a bomb’, says MP
Many dead in blast which has occurred within the Houses of Parliament
Police cordon off wide area around Westminster
P.M’s chief of staff seen in ambulance
Scotland Yard to make statement at 22:00
No. 10 will not comment on ‘wild allegations’ about status of Prime Minister nor other ministers
M.P. says he has heard 'tragic news' about the Prime Minister (PLEASE NOTE, this is currently only speculative)

Rolling breaking news updates on the BBC News website on May 29th



No one voted for that b*stard!!! What we are seeing now is what they call a coup

(Later removed) comment by a British user below a Facebook post from the official account of the UK Government on May 30th



White House’s drumbeat for war joined by the new Prime Minister as Iran formally accused of bombing in London to assassinate PM and kill 22 more in Parliament

Headline for an opinion piece in the Guardian newspaper on June 4th



Fears of war with Iran intensify as Downing Street Summit sees UK, US & others demand Tehran accept responsibility for terror attacks in ultimatum backed by threats of military action

Headline of an article on the Independent website on June 6th



UK Embassy staff told by Foreign Office to leave Tehran
Pull-out of British diplomatic personnel, alongside those of others, begins as many believe war is now certain

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Telegraph newspaper on June 10th



Hands Off Iran!

Header of an opinion piece on the Novara Media website on June 11th



Tehran rejects demands from Washington & London as oil markets continue to slide

Headline of an article in the Financial Times newspaper on June 15th



CENTCOM can confirm that the USS Gabrielle Giffords, while engaged in Freedom of Navigation exercises in the Persian Gulf, has been struck in an unprovoked attack by hostile forces. There are casualties aboard. Please wait for further updates.

Statement issued on Twitter by US Central Command on June 17th



Prime Minister addresses the nation
She confirms that the UK element of Operation Iranian Freedom, Operation Clockwork for British forces, has begun
Reports from Tehran suggest that the Iranian capital is under attack

ITV News station rolling news ticker on June 19th

[forcon]

Oct 26, 2020 20:10:04 GMT James G said:

They Shall Have Their War



Iran’s Supreme Leader dead at Age 90
De facto head of the Islamic Republic said to have had heart attack
World leaders react with condolences despite long-standing tensions between Iran the West

Sky News station rolling news ticker on March 14th



Footage of rioting inside Tehran
Iranian Revolution #2
Hafte-e-Tir Square gunfire
Please stop the soldiers from killing our brothers and sisters

Titles of four of the top ten trending YouTube videos worldwide on March 17th



A spokesman for Iran’s Guardian Council has demanded that the West doesn’t intervene with Iran’s ‘internal issues’. This remark comes alongside comments made from the former Leader of the Labour Party last night denouncing what he called the current Government’s desire for conflict with Iran. Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports from Tehran suggest that the Guardian Council has decided upon a new national religious leader.

Extract from the Midday news broadcast by Times Radio station on March 21st



Horror on the M4!
Bomb blast kills American diplomat travelling within official vehicle on London’s Westway: motive and perpetrators unknown

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Mirror newspaper on March 30th



The US diplomat murdered last month in Britain’s capital was CIA Station Chief in London. There are many questions to answer as to why she was killed, and by who, as well as why the details of her position were covered up with lies until this organisation has revealed them.

Comment within an exposé piece on the Breitbart News website on April 8th



Gulf Crisis reignited as Iranian and US forces undertake mock engagements at sea & in the air
Iran’s new Supreme Leader declares that the Persian Gulf is ‘Iranian territory’ which will be defended until ‘the end’

Two article headlines for the New York Times website on April 23rd



Britain’s biggest warship sets sail for the Middle East!
HMS Queen Elizabeth II, the Royal Navy’s largest ever aircraft carrier, departs Portsmouth bound for the Persian Gulf as Iran showdown continues to expand

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Sun newspaper on April 30th



Oil tanker BURNS in the Gulf: missile attack from Iran feared responsible

Headline of an article on the Mail Online website on May 6th



There are reports coming from Central Command, responsible for U.S. forces in the Middle East, that ‘live firing clashes’ have occurred overnight in the Gulf. No American casualties have been reported but there have been Iranian losses to aircraft and, possibly, a pair of armed speedboats too. A statement from the Pentagon is expected on the hour.

Remarks made on breaking news by a Fox News newsreader on May 9th



They tried to kill KIDS!
Failed attempt by terrorists targeted a party of schoolchildren with their COWARDLY bomb effort against the Eurostar in the Chunnel

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Express newspaper on May 18th



President, Secretary of State both talk with US Congressional leadership concerning possible action against Iran
Foreign Secretary privately warns Cabinet that any US-led conflict with Iran will be ‘a bloodbath’; PM’s spokesperson refuses to confirm nor deny such comments

Two article headlines for the Times website on May 24th



Reports of serious incident on Parliamentary Estate
Met. Police and London Ambulance Service responding to incident in Westminster
‘It was a bomb’, says MP
Many dead in blast which has occurred within the Houses of Parliament
Police cordon off wide area around Westminster
P.M’s chief of staff seen in ambulance
Scotland Yard to make statement at 22:00
No. 10 will not comment on ‘wild allegations’ about status of Prime Minister nor other ministers
M.P. says he has heard 'tragic news' about the Prime Minister (PLEASE NOTE, this is currently only speculative)

Rolling breaking news updates on the BBC News website on May 29th



No one voted for that b*stard!!! What we are seeing now is what they call a coup

(Later removed) comment by a British user below a Facebook post from the official account of the UK Government on May 30th



White House’s drumbeat for war joined by the new Prime Minister as Iran formally accused of bombing in London to assassinate PM and kill 22 more in Parliament

Headline for an opinion piece in the Guardian newspaper on June 4th



Fears of war with Iran intensify as Downing Street Summit sees UK, US & others demand Tehran accept responsibility for terror attacks in ultimatum backed by threats of military action

Headline of an article on the Independent website on June 6th



UK Embassy staff told by Foreign Office to leave Tehran
Pull-out of British diplomatic personnel, alongside those of others, begins as many believe war is now certain

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Telegraph newspaper on June 10th



Hands Off Iran!

Header of an opinion piece on the Novara Media website on June 11th



Tehran rejects demands from Washington & London as oil markets continue to slide

Headline of an article in the Financial Times newspaper on June 15th



CENTCOM can confirm that the USS Gabrielle Giffords, while engaged in Freedom of Navigation exercises in the Persian Gulf, has been struck in an unprovoked attack by hostile forces. There are casualties aboard. Please wait for further updates.

Statement issued on Twitter by US Central Command on June 17th



Prime Minister addresses the nation
She confirms that the UK element of Operation Iranian Freedom, Operation Clockwork for British forces, has begun
Reports from Tehran suggest that the Iranian capital is under attack

ITV News station rolling news ticker on June 19th

Good work here. I really like this format. There was a TL about a Chinese invasion of Taiwan on the other forum that mixed this format in with others. I'll look for the link.

[James G]

Oct 26, 2020 22:12:31 GMT forcon said:

Oct 26, 2020 20:10:04 GMT James G said:

They Shall Have Their War



Iran’s Supreme Leader dead at Age 90
De facto head of the Islamic Republic said to have had heart attack
World leaders react with condolences despite long-standing tensions between Iran the West

Sky News station rolling news ticker on March 14th



Footage of rioting inside Tehran
Iranian Revolution #2
Hafte-e-Tir Square gunfire
Please stop the soldiers from killing our brothers and sisters

Titles of four of the top ten trending YouTube videos worldwide on March 17th



A spokesman for Iran’s Guardian Council has demanded that the West doesn’t intervene with Iran’s ‘internal issues’. This remark comes alongside comments made from the former Leader of the Labour Party last night denouncing what he called the current Government’s desire for conflict with Iran. Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports from Tehran suggest that the Guardian Council has decided upon a new national religious leader.

Extract from the Midday news broadcast by Times Radio station on March 21st



Horror on the M4!
Bomb blast kills American diplomat travelling within official vehicle on London’s Westway: motive and perpetrators unknown

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Mirror newspaper on March 30th



The US diplomat murdered last month in Britain’s capital was CIA Station Chief in London. There are many questions to answer as to why she was killed, and by who, as well as why the details of her position were covered up with lies until this organisation has revealed them.

Comment within an exposé piece on the Breitbart News website on April 8th



Gulf Crisis reignited as Iranian and US forces undertake mock engagements at sea & in the air
Iran’s new Supreme Leader declares that the Persian Gulf is ‘Iranian territory’ which will be defended until ‘the end’

Two article headlines for the New York Times website on April 23rd



Britain’s biggest warship sets sail for the Middle East!
HMS Queen Elizabeth II, the Royal Navy’s largest ever aircraft carrier, departs Portsmouth bound for the Persian Gulf as Iran showdown continues to expand

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Sun newspaper on April 30th



Oil tanker BURNS in the Gulf: missile attack from Iran feared responsible

Headline of an article on the Mail Online website on May 6th



There are reports coming from Central Command, responsible for U.S. forces in the Middle East, that ‘live firing clashes’ have occurred overnight in the Gulf. No American casualties have been reported but there have been Iranian losses to aircraft and, possibly, a pair of armed speedboats too. A statement from the Pentagon is expected on the hour.

Remarks made on breaking news by a Fox News newsreader on May 9th



They tried to kill KIDS!
Failed attempt by terrorists targeted a party of schoolchildren with their COWARDLY bomb effort against the Eurostar in the Chunnel

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Express newspaper on May 18th



President, Secretary of State both talk with US Congressional leadership concerning possible action against Iran
Foreign Secretary privately warns Cabinet that any US-led conflict with Iran will be ‘a bloodbath’; PM’s spokesperson refuses to confirm nor deny such comments

Two article headlines for the Times website on May 24th



Reports of serious incident on Parliamentary Estate
Met. Police and London Ambulance Service responding to incident in Westminster
‘It was a bomb’, says MP
Many dead in blast which has occurred within the Houses of Parliament
Police cordon off wide area around Westminster
P.M’s chief of staff seen in ambulance
Scotland Yard to make statement at 22:00
No. 10 will not comment on ‘wild allegations’ about status of Prime Minister nor other ministers
M.P. says he has heard 'tragic news' about the Prime Minister (PLEASE NOTE, this is currently only speculative)

Rolling breaking news updates on the BBC News website on May 29th



No one voted for that b*stard!!! What we are seeing now is what they call a coup

(Later removed) comment by a British user below a Facebook post from the official account of the UK Government on May 30th



White House’s drumbeat for war joined by the new Prime Minister as Iran formally accused of bombing in London to assassinate PM and kill 22 more in Parliament

Headline for an opinion piece in the Guardian newspaper on June 4th



Fears of war with Iran intensify as Downing Street Summit sees UK, US & others demand Tehran accept responsibility for terror attacks in ultimatum backed by threats of military action

Headline of an article on the Independent website on June 6th



UK Embassy staff told by Foreign Office to leave Tehran
Pull-out of British diplomatic personnel, alongside those of others, begins as many believe war is now certain

Headline and sub-headline of an article in the Daily Telegraph newspaper on June 10th



Hands Off Iran!

Header of an opinion piece on the Novara Media website on June 11th



Tehran rejects demands from Washington & London as oil markets continue to slide

Headline of an article in the Financial Times newspaper on June 15th



CENTCOM can confirm that the USS Gabrielle Giffords, while engaged in Freedom of Navigation exercises in the Persian Gulf, has been struck in an unprovoked attack by hostile forces. There are casualties aboard. Please wait for further updates.

Statement issued on Twitter by US Central Command on June 17th



Prime Minister addresses the nation
She confirms that the UK element of Operation Iranian Freedom, Operation Clockwork for British forces, has begun
Reports from Tehran suggest that the Iranian capital is under attack

ITV News station rolling news ticker on June 19th

Good work here. I really like this format. There was a TL about a Chinese invasion of Taiwan on the other forum that mixed this format in with others. I'll look for the link.

Thank you.
I got the idea from the very start of Team Yankee (incident in the Gulf leads to the war in Europe).
I wrote this in a hurry and have thought of changes since, but the idea is one which I will probably use once again.

[James G]

Sneaky buggers


The Soviet invasion of Iran begun on July 1st, 1984. The outrageous actions undertaken by the leadership of the Islamic Republic had gone on for too long. No longer could those in Moscow allow them to continue. Iran had refused to heed to threats nor even back down during the Soviet-instigated recent border clashes. It had been decided by those in the Kremlin that the situation would only get worse. Iranian activities on Soviet soil – denied by Tehran – threatened the whole house of cards which was the Soviet empire. Enough was enough. The Soviet Army would march on Tehran to install a responsible government there. Long-standing plans for a hypothetical conflict, ones recently dusted off, were modified and orders sent to participating combat & non-combat forces. A hasty, partial mobilisation in the southern military districts of the Soviet Union had seen the capability to launch the invasion reached in nine days from decision to going over the border.

Soviet special forces, aided by paratroopers for fire support, saw the airports around Tehran as well as an airhead at Tabriz seized without much resistance. An airlift begun once Soviet fighters had neutralised enough of Iran’s air defences and this allowed for attacking riflemen on the ground to be joined by light armour with haste. The Iranian capital was a battlefield in the first hours of the war. From out of the Caucasus, the Turkmen SSR and also Afghanistan, columns of Soviet armour rolled. They had extensive air cover and benefitted from electronic warfare support which the Iranians couldn’t hope to contend with. Short-range ballistic missiles – some laden with fast-acting nerve agents – supported the tanks and infantry carriers pushing deep into Iran. Airmobile troopers and parachutists were also present on the flanks and out ahead to give these attacks extra impetus. Iraqi forces struck all along the front of their ongoing war with Iran, supported by direct Soviet air intervention in places. Much hope was put in what the Iraqis would achieve… so much of that rather a forlorn hope. Regardless, the Iraqi attack did what it was supposed to do and kept Iranian forces where they were on this third front of the invasion.

In addition, Moscow opened up a fourth front simultaneously with those in the north, the east (Afghanistan) and the west (Iraq). Soviet Naval Infantry – their blue-bereted marines – joined with detachments of more of those paratroopers and Spetsnaz in attacking from the south. Iran’s long coastline along the Persian Gulf became a battlefield. The numbers of attackers here weren’t many and there was a great deal of danger of serious reverse for the mission goals. Still, the landings made in Bandar Abbas (and nearby islands) as well as at Bushehr and the new port at Chabahar were undertaken. It was important and the risks judged against the geopolitical rewards. Soviet forces grabbed southern access points along the Iranian coastline not just for their own use and so that they could attack Iran from all sides. This was additionally done to keep the Americans out.

Briefed on this element of the invasion later in the day, the American president uttered the phrase ‘sneaky buggers’ when shown the maps and with the implications pointed out. Moscow’s actions along the coast of Iran meant that they had their forces exactly at the same locations where US forces taking part in any hypothetical landings going into Iran would be using. The initial entry points were rapidly being expanded – Iraqis being shipped to into Bushehr and Soviet riflemen flying into Bandar Abbas – and there wasn’t much chance of the Iranians pushing them back into the sea. Like those in Moscow, military planners in Washington had previously war-gamed scenarios for American forces to go into Iran. One of those options concerned what the Pentagon called the ‘Zagros Doctrine’: US forces reaching those mountains in the south and stopping – with or without shots being exchanged – Soviet forces coming down from the north and east from reaching the Persian Gulf. That was now not an option which the American president had at his disposal should he wish to see his country intervene in Iran. Soviet forces would have to be engaged first, ahead of any landing. They weren’t stupid in Moscow, those sneaky buggers there.

No American intervention came. Even if the southern route into Iran had been open and there was the possibility of exploring the Zagros Doctrine to its logical end, the decision taken in Washington wasn’t the same as that reached in Moscow. The United States wasn’t about to go to war for the sake of the stupid actions of the rapidly collapsing regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Yes, American geo-political interests were seriously threatened by what was happening but movements of defensive forces, new alliances and a series of secret diplomatic contacts between Moscow & Washington took place. Meanwhile, the Soviet invasion continued. Hiccups occurred, even serious reverses in places, but for all of the resistance that Iran could offer, one of the world’s superpowers brought them down. Seven weeks after the invasion began, the last organised Iranian resistance was obliterated in the Esfahan–Qom area deep inside the country. There was already a new government in Tehran and there were mass graves outside the city of those who refused to see sense when it came to the new order. Global war fears subsided and the strategic play carried out by Moscow in seizing the southern shore paid off big time.

The war was won and now begun the insurgency. It would be one to rival that in neighbouring Afghanistan in intensity and brutality. America had refused to commit their own troops to fight in Iran but it was sending guns to Iranians willing to fight for Iran before the end of the year. There would be no quiet end to this conflict either. Decades later, after the regimes in Moscow & Baghdad, plus that one established in Tehran in 1984, were long gone, the fighting would continue.

[forcon]

Nice work. I liked the coordination with Iraq; it is only logical.

The landings on the coast are interesting. I suppose the Soviets could pull it off, but it'd be a logistical nightmare. They could have staged at Socotra Island, but that's thousands of miles away. They'd need a major naval sortie to pull it off. Wouldn't that risk discovery? If they could do it with suprise, it would be an excellent manoeuvre from a military perspective.

[stevep]

Oct 27, 2020 19:02:20 GMT James G said:

Sneaky buggers


The Soviet invasion of Iran begun on July 1st, 1984. The outrageous actions undertaken by the leadership of the Islamic Republic had gone on for too long. No longer could those in Moscow allow them to continue. Iran had refused to heed to threats nor even back down during the Soviet-instigated recent border clashes. It had been decided by those in the Kremlin that the situation would only get worse. Iranian activities on Soviet soil – denied by Tehran – threatened the whole house of cards which was the Soviet empire. Enough was enough. The Soviet Army would march on Tehran to install a responsible government there. Long-standing plans for a hypothetical conflict, ones recently dusted off, were modified and orders sent to participating combat & non-combat forces. A hasty, partial mobilisation in the southern military districts of the Soviet Union had seen the capability to launch the invasion reached in nine days from decision to going over the border.

Soviet special forces, aided by paratroopers for fire support, saw the airports around Tehran as well as an airhead at Tabriz seized without much resistance. An airlift begun once Soviet fighters had neutralised enough of Iran’s air defences and this allowed for attacking riflemen on the ground to be joined by light armour with haste. The Iranian capital was a battlefield in the first hours of the war. From out of the Caucasus, the Turkmen SSR and also Afghanistan, columns of Soviet armour rolled. They had extensive air cover and benefitted from electronic warfare support which the Iranians couldn’t hope to contend with. Short-range ballistic missiles – some laden with fast-acting nerve agents – supported the tanks and infantry carriers pushing deep into Iran. Airmobile troopers and parachutists were also present on the flanks and out ahead to give these attacks extra impetus. Iraqi forces struck all along the front of their ongoing war with Iran, supported by direct Soviet air intervention in places. Much hope was put in what the Iraqis would achieve… so much of that rather a forlorn hope. Regardless, the Iraqi attack did what it was supposed to do and kept Iranian forces where they were on this third front of the invasion.

In addition, Moscow opened up a fourth front simultaneously with those in the north, the east (Afghanistan) and the west (Iraq). Soviet Naval Infantry – their blue-bereted marines – joined with detachments of more of those paratroopers and Spetsnaz in attacking from the south. Iran’s long coastline along the Persian Gulf became a battlefield. The numbers of attackers here weren’t many and there was a great deal of danger of serious reverse for the mission goals. Still, the landings made in Bandar Abbas (and nearby islands) as well as at Bushehr and the new port at Chabahar were undertaken. It was important and the risks judged against the geopolitical rewards. Soviet forces grabbed southern access points along the Iranian coastline not just for their own use and so that they could attack Iran from all sides. This was additionally done to keep the Americans out.

Briefed on this element of the invasion later in the day, the American president uttered the phrase ‘sneaky buggers’ when shown the maps and with the implications pointed out. Moscow’s actions along the coast of Iran meant that they had their forces exactly at the same locations where US forces taking part in any hypothetical landings going into Iran would be using. The initial entry points were rapidly being expanded – Iraqis being shipped to into Bushehr and Soviet riflemen flying into Bandar Abbas – and there wasn’t much chance of the Iranians pushing them back into the sea. Like those in Moscow, military planners in Washington had previously war-gamed scenarios for American forces to go into Iran. One of those options concerned what the Pentagon called the ‘Zagros Doctrine’: US forces reaching those mountains in the south and stopping – with or without shots being exchanged – Soviet forces coming down from the north and east from reaching the Persian Gulf. That was now not an option which the American president had at his disposal should he wish to see his country intervene in Iran. Soviet forces would have to be engaged first, ahead of any landing. They weren’t stupid in Moscow, those sneaky buggers there.

No American intervention came. Even if the southern route into Iran had been open and there was the possibility of exploring the Zagros Doctrine to its logical end, the decision taken in Washington wasn’t the same as that reached in Moscow. The United States wasn’t about to go to war for the sake of the stupid actions of the rapidly collapsing regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Yes, American geo-political interests were seriously threatened by what was happening but movements of defensive forces, new alliances and a series of secret diplomatic contacts between Moscow & Washington took place. Meanwhile, the Soviet invasion continued. Hiccups occurred, even serious reverses in places, but for all of the resistance that Iran could offer, one of the world’s superpowers brought them down. Seven weeks after the invasion began, the last organised Iranian resistance was obliterated in the Esfahan–Qom area deep inside the country. There was already a new government in Tehran and there were mass graves outside the city of those who refused to see sense when it came to the new order. Global war fears subsided and the strategic play carried out by Moscow in seizing the southern shore paid off big time.

The war was won and now begun the insurgency. It would be one to rival that in neighbouring Afghanistan in intensity and brutality. America had refused to commit their own troops to fight in Iran but it was sending guns to Iranians willing to fight for Iran before the end of the year. There would be no quiet end to this conflict either. Decades later, after the regimes in Moscow & Baghdad, plus that one established in Tehran in 1983, were long gone, the fighting would continue.

  Well if they thought they had problems in Afghanistan the Soviets have it in spades now.  True the Soviets are even more brutal than in Afghanistan with gas, especially nerve gas being used.  Which is likely to have international consequences.

[James G]

Oct 27, 2020 22:01:43 GMT forcon said:

Nice work. I liked the coordination with Iraq; it is only logical.

The landings on the coast are interesting. I suppose the Soviets could pull it off, but it'd be a logistical nightmare. They could have staged at Socotra Island, but that's thousands of miles away. They'd need a major naval sortie to pull it off. Wouldn't that risk discovery? If they could do it with suprise, it would be an excellent manoeuvre from a military perspective.

Thank you. Yep, Iraq would be part of the plan but fail badly.
My thinking is that Moscow would know the Zagros Doctrine - fiction writers like Harold Coyle did - and counter it. To not do so would allow the US to gain a foothold and that would be playing by the Pentagon's game-plan.
Those would be small numbers of marines, less than a battalion at each, reinforced by more marines flown in later via Iraq or over Afghanistan. Each landing is more of a dent in any US landing than an effort to win control of each place and they'd take heavy losses. A full-on amphibious assault risks the loss of surprise as you say. There's a good chance that at Bandar Abbas, defeat might come unless reinforcements arrive in number but men, even tanks, could be flown in later to establish a strongpoint even if all else fails.

[James G]

Oct 27, 2020 22:07:34 GMT stevep said:

Oct 27, 2020 19:02:20 GMT James G said:

Sneaky buggers


The Soviet invasion of Iran begun on July 1st, 1984. The outrageous actions undertaken by the leadership of the Islamic Republic had gone on for too long. No longer could those in Moscow allow them to continue. Iran had refused to heed to threats nor even back down during the Soviet-instigated recent border clashes. It had been decided by those in the Kremlin that the situation would only get worse. Iranian activities on Soviet soil – denied by Tehran – threatened the whole house of cards which was the Soviet empire. Enough was enough. The Soviet Army would march on Tehran to install a responsible government there. Long-standing plans for a hypothetical conflict, ones recently dusted off, were modified and orders sent to participating combat & non-combat forces. A hasty, partial mobilisation in the southern military districts of the Soviet Union had seen the capability to launch the invasion reached in nine days from decision to going over the border.

Soviet special forces, aided by paratroopers for fire support, saw the airports around Tehran as well as an airhead at Tabriz seized without much resistance. An airlift begun once Soviet fighters had neutralised enough of Iran’s air defences and this allowed for attacking riflemen on the ground to be joined by light armour with haste. The Iranian capital was a battlefield in the first hours of the war. From out of the Caucasus, the Turkmen SSR and also Afghanistan, columns of Soviet armour rolled. They had extensive air cover and benefitted from electronic warfare support which the Iranians couldn’t hope to contend with. Short-range ballistic missiles – some laden with fast-acting nerve agents – supported the tanks and infantry carriers pushing deep into Iran. Airmobile troopers and parachutists were also present on the flanks and out ahead to give these attacks extra impetus. Iraqi forces struck all along the front of their ongoing war with Iran, supported by direct Soviet air intervention in places. Much hope was put in what the Iraqis would achieve… so much of that rather a forlorn hope. Regardless, the Iraqi attack did what it was supposed to do and kept Iranian forces where they were on this third front of the invasion.

In addition, Moscow opened up a fourth front simultaneously with those in the north, the east (Afghanistan) and the west (Iraq). Soviet Naval Infantry – their blue-bereted marines – joined with detachments of more of those paratroopers and Spetsnaz in attacking from the south. Iran’s long coastline along the Persian Gulf became a battlefield. The numbers of attackers here weren’t many and there was a great deal of danger of serious reverse for the mission goals. Still, the landings made in Bandar Abbas (and nearby islands) as well as at Bushehr and the new port at Chabahar were undertaken. It was important and the risks judged against the geopolitical rewards. Soviet forces grabbed southern access points along the Iranian coastline not just for their own use and so that they could attack Iran from all sides. This was additionally done to keep the Americans out.

Briefed on this element of the invasion later in the day, the American president uttered the phrase ‘sneaky buggers’ when shown the maps and with the implications pointed out. Moscow’s actions along the coast of Iran meant that they had their forces exactly at the same locations where US forces taking part in any hypothetical landings going into Iran would be using. The initial entry points were rapidly being expanded – Iraqis being shipped to into Bushehr and Soviet riflemen flying into Bandar Abbas – and there wasn’t much chance of the Iranians pushing them back into the sea. Like those in Moscow, military planners in Washington had previously war-gamed scenarios for American forces to go into Iran. One of those options concerned what the Pentagon called the ‘Zagros Doctrine’: US forces reaching those mountains in the south and stopping – with or without shots being exchanged – Soviet forces coming down from the north and east from reaching the Persian Gulf. That was now not an option which the American president had at his disposal should he wish to see his country intervene in Iran. Soviet forces would have to be engaged first, ahead of any landing. They weren’t stupid in Moscow, those sneaky buggers there.

No American intervention came. Even if the southern route into Iran had been open and there was the possibility of exploring the Zagros Doctrine to its logical end, the decision taken in Washington wasn’t the same as that reached in Moscow. The United States wasn’t about to go to war for the sake of the stupid actions of the rapidly collapsing regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Yes, American geo-political interests were seriously threatened by what was happening but movements of defensive forces, new alliances and a series of secret diplomatic contacts between Moscow & Washington took place. Meanwhile, the Soviet invasion continued. Hiccups occurred, even serious reverses in places, but for all of the resistance that Iran could offer, one of the world’s superpowers brought them down. Seven weeks after the invasion began, the last organised Iranian resistance was obliterated in the Esfahan–Qom area deep inside the country. There was already a new government in Tehran and there were mass graves outside the city of those who refused to see sense when it came to the new order. Global war fears subsided and the strategic play carried out by Moscow in seizing the southern shore paid off big time.

The war was won and now begun the insurgency. It would be one to rival that in neighbouring Afghanistan in intensity and brutality. America had refused to commit their own troops to fight in Iran but it was sending guns to Iranians willing to fight for Iran before the end of the year. There would be no quiet end to this conflict either. Decades later, after the regimes in Moscow & Baghdad, plus that one established in Tehran in 1983, were long gone, the fighting would continue.

  Well if they thought they had problems in Afghanistan the Soviets have it in spades now.  True the Soviets are even more brutal than in Afghanistan with gas, especially nerve gas being used.  Which is likely to have international consequences.

Iran would be Afghanistan X100.
It depends if the world can find out. Iran wouldn't be open to neutral, unmolested inspectors. Iraq used gas against Iran and the world turned a blind eye. the Soviets would be different, but proof, that everyone believes, would be hard to stick.

[James G]

Accidental assassination


It was the early hours of December 19th 1998 when Jaguar Flight departed from Ahmad al-Jaber Airbase in Kuwait. The two American warplanes flew northwards, crossing into Iraq and taking part in Operation Desert Fox: air strikes against Saddam’s regime. There were other US Air Force, US Navy and British RAF aircraft flying on similar missions to that which Jaguar Flight was undertaking too. For the two airmen who flew this pair of strike-fighters, they were focused on their mission rather than the bigger picture. Their unit, the 522nd Fighter Squadron, had only recently arrived in-theatre after deploying from home station back in New Mexico. Captains Martinez and Turner each flew their F-16C Fighting Falcons towards a selected target which they were ordered to strike at. There were fighters in the skies too along with electronic warfare and command-&-control aircraft. Everyone had a job to do and that of Jaguar Flight was to hit an identified command centre deep inside Iraq near to the city of Al Amarah.

Leading the way due to his seniority, Martinez took Jaguar Flight along the assigned route. Known and suspected dangers – Iraqi ground based air defences – were avoided and the AWACS aircraft flying was keeping watch in case the Iraqis should do what they hadn’t on previous nights and put fighters up. He didn’t think that they would do so though he and his wingman were as prepared as they could be should the worst happen. They were carrying bombs but had self-defence air-to-air missiles on their aircraft wingtips too. He listened throughout the flight for a warning but none came that hostile jets were up. Further and further inside Iraq, without opposition, Jaguar Flight went. The Iranian border was some distance away to the east but Martinez took them nowhere close to there. That route which he did follow towards Al Amarah wasn’t direct yet progress was on schedule. Soon enough, final approach towards the target was made.

Dropping low, Martinez and Turner each increased speed. Their F-16s were singled-engined fighters but could go fast enough for this mission. Jaguar Flight raced low over the ground in the pitch black darkness. Arming switches were released as each airman waited for the exact moment for release. They couldn’t see their target and wouldn’t do so even at the moment of weapons release. However, they didn’t need to. The command centre was up ahead and they were going to bomb it in the darkness. Their weapons wouldn’t destroy the site completely but there was the expectation that they could do rather a lot with their bombing. Neither airman intended to disappoint. The countdown to weapons release raced towards its finale and then, on cue, Martinez called out over the radio mike linking him direct to Turner: “Bombs away.”

Dozens of high explosive bombs fell away from each F-16. They were contact- & radar-fused and exploded after Jaguar Flight had already departed the immediate target area. Martinez led Turner away to the west and began climbing as those detonations occurred, following the pre-planned egress route to perfection. Away from Al Amarah they went and towards a waiting tanker to give each aircraft a top-up of fuel to allow them to get back to Kuwait. Each man concentrated on their flight as they monitored flight systems and listened out for warnings of enemy action. They thought little of what exactly they had just done with the actual bomb run and what they might have achieved. In the back of Turner’s mind especially, he would like to see the post-strike images that would come but for now, like Martinez, his attention was elsewhere. They wanted to get back safely to where they came from when completing this combat mission. The identity of one of the many people killed on their bomb run was unknown to them.


In Washington, such a thing was discovered several days later. December 19th was the finale of Desert Fox but it wasn’t until the 22nd that that Central Intelligence Agency came to the understanding that Saddam Hussein was dead. Iraq’s dictator had been at that Al Amarah command base. He was within a column of vehicles departing at the exact moment when Jaguar Flight appeared above. The man had been the victim of an accidental assassination, a stroke of luck. There was a leadership vacuum inside Iraq and confusion surrounding what had happened to Saddam yet he was certainly dead. The CIA’s head paid an urgent visit to his president.

Bill Clinton shed no tears for Saddam. The man was a monster whose hands were dripping in the blood of many innocents. An enemy of America, a killer of his own people and others from elsewhere, Saddam’s death was, overall, a Good Thing. However, Clinton hadn’t authorised bombings of Iraq to kill the man. The Iraq Disarmament Crisis was something which he inherited upon entering the White House. Saddam’s regime was being bombed to bring it to heel and allow for UN inspectors to do their work where Iraq would be disarmed of its capability to manufacture and employ weapons of mass destruction. Ridding the country of its leader hadn’t been a goal which Clinton, nor his allies in Britain & elsewhere, sought.

It had happened though. Saddam was dead, killed by American bombs. There were going to be consequences.

[stevep]

Oct 29, 2020 19:19:20 GMT James G said:

Accidental assassination


It was the early hours of December 19th 1998 when Jaguar Flight departed from Ahmad al-Jaber Airbase in Kuwait. The two American warplanes flew northwards, crossing into Iraq and taking part in Operation Desert Fox: air strikes against Saddam’s regime. There were other US Air Force, US Navy and British RAF aircraft flying on similar missions to that which Jaguar Flight was undertaking too. For the two airmen who flew this pair of strike-fighters, they were focused on their mission rather than the bigger picture. Their unit, the 522nd Fighter Squadron, had only recently arrived in-theatre after deploying from home station back in New Mexico. Captains Martinez and Turner each flew their F-16C Fighting Falcons towards a selected target which they were ordered to strike at. There were fighters in the skies too along with electronic warfare and command-&-control aircraft. Everyone had a job to do and that of Jaguar Flight was to hit an identified command centre deep inside Iraq near to the city of Al Amarah.

Leading the way due to his seniority, Martinez took Jaguar Flight along the assigned route. Known and suspected dangers – Iraqi ground based air defences – were avoided and the AWACS aircraft flying was keeping watch in case the Iraqis should do what they hadn’t on previous nights and put fighters up. He didn’t think that they would do so though he and his wingman were as prepared as they could be should the worst happen. They were carrying bombs but had self-defence air-to-air missiles on their aircraft wingtips too. He listened throughout the flight for a warning but none came that hostile jets were up. Further and further inside Iraq, without opposition, Jaguar Flight went. The Iranian border was some distance away to the east but Martinez took them nowhere close to there. That route which he did follow towards Al Amarah wasn’t direct yet progress was on schedule. Soon enough, final approach towards the target was made.

Dropping low, Martinez and Turner each increased speed. Their F-16s were singled-engined fighters but could go fast enough for this mission. Jaguar Flight raced low over the ground in the pitch black darkness. Arming switches were released as each airman waited for the exact moment for release. They couldn’t see their target and wouldn’t do so even at the moment of weapons release. However, they didn’t need to. The command centre was up ahead and they were going to bomb it in the darkness. Their weapons wouldn’t destroy the site completely but there was the expectation that they could do rather a lot with their bombing. Neither airman intended to disappoint. The countdown to weapons release raced towards its finale and then, on cue, Martinez called out over the radio mike linking him direct to Turner: “Bombs away.”

Dozens of high explosive bombs fell away from each F-16. They were contact- & radar-fused and exploded after Jaguar Flight had already departed the immediate target area. Martinez led Turner away to the west and began climbing as those detonations occurred, following the pre-planned egress route to perfection. Away from Al Amarah they went and towards a waiting tanker to give each aircraft a top-up of fuel to allow them to get back to Kuwait. Each man concentrated on their flight as they monitored flight systems and listened out for warnings of enemy action. They thought little of what exactly they had just done with the actual bomb run and what they might have achieved. In the back of Turner’s mind especially, he would like to see the post-strike images that would come but for now, like Martinez, his attention was elsewhere. They wanted to get back safely to where they came from when completing this combat mission. The identity of one of the many people killed on their bomb run was unknown to them.


In Washington, such a thing was discovered several days later. December 19th was the finale of Desert Fox but it wasn’t until the 22nd that that Central Intelligence Agency came to the understanding that Saddam Hussein was dead. Iraq’s dictator had been at that Al Amarah command base. He was within a column of vehicles departing at the exact moment when Jaguar Flight appeared above. The man had been the victim of an accidental assassination, a stroke of luck. There was a leadership vacuum inside Iraq and confusion surrounding what had happened to Saddam yet he was certainly dead. The CIA’s head paid an urgent visit to his president.

Bill Clinton shed no tears for Saddam. The man was a monster whose hands were dripping in the blood of many innocents. An enemy of America, a killer of his own people and others from elsewhere, Saddam’s death was, overall, a Good Thing. However, Clinton hadn’t authorised bombings of Iraq to kill the man. The Iraq Disarmament Crisis was something which he inherited upon entering the White House. Saddam’s regime was being bombed to bring it to heel and allow for UN inspectors to do their work where Iraq would be disarmed of its capability to manufacture and employ weapons of mass destruction. Ridding the country of its leader hadn’t been a goal which Clinton, nor his allies in Britain & elsewhere, sought.

It had happened though. Saddam was dead, killed by American bombs. There were going to be consequences.

  James G,

  Interesting and always a possibility.  Of course a lot of people will be convinced or claim that the targeting was intentional.  Also going to be interesting and important who wins the power struggle in Iraq for the succession or it might lead to an earlier collapse of the state.

  Steve