The Shield: a novel (17 page)

“
I was going to raise this question too,” the Absorption Minister said. “Most of the new instructors we are training joined one of the two Teachers’ Unions, which are increasing their demands. An emergency labor order will help me too.”

Am
os summarized: “We seem to be in good shape generally, except for some labor trouble which we can neutralize for a while using the emergency laws. Hopefully everything will get sorted out shortly.”

“
I don’t think we should use the emergency laws against the unions,” the Finance Minister interrupted. “The last thing we need right now is a serious internal fight. Why not tell them that six million new immigrants are on the way? There’s no reason to keep it a secret, which it won’t be for long anyway. Once they realize the labor shortage will be gone in a couple of months, I’m sure their stance will change. If they’re smart - and there are some smart union leaders out there - they’ll stop fighting us and start thinking about organizing the newcomers. This will be the first time in our history that they’ll have that opportunity and I think they’ll be eager to do so.” She leaned back in her chair and looked around the conference table challenging anybody to object.

“
I am not sure you are right,” the Labor Minister said mildly. “Our unions have been part of the establishment since the beginning of the state. We have companies that are owned by them. They know very well how to play politics and squeeze the government but have been steadily losing ground in the private sector. I think they’ll try to use their power to paralyze the government, regardless of the labor market.”

“
Hannah’s right,” Amos said. “We may as well let the country know about the new immigrants. It will cause an upheaval, but we have to make the announcement sooner or later. May as well do it now. If after the announcement the unions relent, I’ll be very happy. If not, we can still use the emergency laws.

“
We’re planning on taking all our people out of Europe within a year - and we should be counting on at least six million. When they start arriving by the hundred thousands, we’ll have enough labor to accelerate the construction process and hopefully the unions will stop bothering us, at least for a while.

“
We’re going to be building like crazy, everything from housing to metallurgical plants to oil refineries. We’ve got to be self-sufficient as soon as possible – preferably within two years. We'll have to purchase some equipment, probably from the U.S.”

***

“May I have your attention,” the Reverend John Walker said loudly.  He had gathered his group again to make several announcements.  The crowd was noisy and cheerful. Most had just returned from a tour of several holy places in Jerusalem and were discussing their trip. “I want to tell you about the discussions I’ve been having with the authorities. Please feel free to interrupt at any point with questions.” The room quieted down and everybody looked at him expectantly.

“
The government recommends we postpone the tour of Bethlehem we’ve been planning as there may be trouble from Palestinian extremists. How many want to go anyway?” Most raised their hands. “Ok, we go tomorrow as planned. The bus will be in front of the hotel at 10 am

“
On a different note, I’ve been assured that anyone needing medical treatment will be treated free of charge at any hospital.   I’ve also been instructed to tell you that anyone who wants to work will be issued an Israeli ID and work permit. There’s a serious labor shortage and most of us will be able to find jobs. Any questions?”

“
Do we have to work or is it a choice?” an elderly man asked.

“
The way they explained it to me, all men over 67 and women over 65 will receive Israeli Social Security payments, which should be enough to live on. Anyone younger than that will have to work to get an income unless they are disabled.”

“
That’s not fair!” one of the younger women exclaimed. “I have a perfectly nice job back home and don’t want to work for these people.”

“
Dear Elizabeth,” the Reverend said patiently, “you mean you used to have a job in the U.S. we came from. That world and all our sources of income there don’t exist yet. We can’t expect to live on charity here and be tourists forever. We need to contribute to the society we’re part of. I recommend that everyone - including retirees - discuss the situation with the labor advisor that will meet with us the day after tomorrow. They promise to help everyone find appropriate jobs.” The group looked somewhat surprised and dismayed but there weren’t any more questions.

The weather was pleasant and the traffic sparse for their trip to Bethlehem the next day. There were two checkpoints between Jerusalem and their destination. At both of them Israeli soldiers boarded the bus and politely asked for identification. Bethlehem, the boys told the group, was dangerous, filled with terrorists prepared to attack civilians. At the second checkpoint an officer boarded the bus: “I highly recommend that you postpone your trip, sir. We have information attacks are being prepared in the territories under Palestinian control and you are taking a grave risk going there.”

“Are you saying we are prohibited from going into Bethlehem?” Walker asked.

“
No. This is a free country, and unless there is an emergency border closure, you are free to go. But, again, I highly recommend that, for your safety, you stay in secure areas.” The officer shrugged: “I can’t stop you, but you are taking an unreasonable risk.”

“
Thank you. I’ll discuss it with my group,” the Reverend responded as he climbed back on the bus.

“
Sir,” the bus driver addressed him after closing the door “I would like to say that the Israeli army always says these things to tourists.
Our bus belongs to an Arab-owned company from Nazareth. My fellow Palestinians are not stupid; they don’t attack tourists. They have nothing against you. It is the Israeli occupation that causes all these problems.”

“
Thank you, my friend,” the Reverend smiled at the driver
.
“I suspected as much. Let’s go.”

The bus continued on its way and arrived in Bethlehem a little behind schedule. Reverend Walker guided his group around the streets of the ancient town and into the Church of the Nativity. “This is a sacred place,” he told them.

The next thing he knew, there was an eerie quiet. He didn’t know where he was. It took him a while to realize that a severed human leg, still dressed in pants was on the floor in front of him.

The quiet was the result of severe
damage to his hearing – being less than ten feet from a suicide bomber can do that. His group was decimated. Most of them were seriously injured, ten were dead. The Reverend was one of the lucky ones. He was operated on three times in two days. They removed most of the nails and ball bearings that were imbedded in his legs and chest and reattached one finger that was hanging by a sliver of skin on his left hand. Nobody could cure his nightmares in which he relived the blast. He felt guilty for surviving and was afraid to fall asleep.

On Thursday, June 26, 1941, six days since The Event No
am Shaviv was in his tent. His company was spread out over ten kilometers of the Egyptian border. Their chances of stopping anybody from crossing would be extremely unlikely if it wasn’t for the electronic fence. This morning he had received a call from battalion intelligence: “We have reliable information that an attempt to cross into Egypt will be made today or tomorrow by a single infiltrator.”

No
am transmitted the new information to his platoon commanders and an hour later drove along the line to check how the company was doing. As usual, he had remarks for his platoon commanders, but generally he was satisfied and let his men know it.

At two the next morning he got another call from battalion: “Your customer is on his way. Take care to get him alive. We need to see what he’s carrying and we need to talk to him.”

“Is he alone or is somebody leading him?” Noam asked.

“
Funny you should ask, lieutenant,” the intelligence officer chuckled. “He has an escort. We want the escort to go through unharmed and get back in. We need him to think that his mission was successful.”

“
You are telling me that now?” Noam was somewhat indignant.

“
Well, I told you as soon as I heard about it. You know how the Security Services are – never share with anybody.” The officer on the other end of the line sounded only slightly apologetic: “In any case, you have about two hours before they try to come through on the northern edge of your sector, so I’m told. Good Luck.”

No
am’s next move was to notify the platoon guarding the northern sector, where the Egyptian, Gaza and Israeli borders met. Next he notified the other platoons.

When the new platoon commander awoke Uri Dayan, the sergeant was slightly annoyed. He’d only had three hours of sleep after checking the guard positions for the umpteenth time, making sure that everybody was well hidden, quiet and awake – not an easy feat on night duty. The new commander wanted him to visit all the guard positions again, this time instructing them to keep their eyes open but not interfere with the expected infiltrators. The commander would organize a pursuit party to nab the courier.

An hour and a half later, close to sunrise, with gray light full of shadows, the two figures would have slipped through undetected if it wasn’t for the combination of night-vision equipment, an electronic fence and the troops expecting something to happen. As planned, the two dark figures passed through the line oblivious to the alarms that went off in headquarters. The platoon commander, followed at a distance by Sergeant Dayan, trailed after them. The other five members of their squad took a parallel route, reducing their chance of being detected by the returning escort.

About a mile from the border the infiltrators shook hands and parted. Uri waited behind rocks as the escort passed by heading back into Israel. The sergeant fingered his radio: “He’s on his way back - Be quiet and let him through.”

Now they concentrated on the lone figure walking into Egypt. The commander ran through an adjacent wadi, emerging in front of the courier. The man was walking slowly, consulting his compass from time to time, relaxed now that he was in Egyptian territory. Uri got up and walked behind the dark figure. When he was less than twenty yards away, Uri shot him with a dart gun, one of about twenty issued to the platoon earlier in the day.

The courier collapsed noiselessly and was carried back to the platoon’s base and into a waiting jeep.

***

Moh
ammad al Husseini was unhappy, not an unusual state of mind for him. Of the four people his group sent to contact German agents, two were apprehended at the Lebanese and Jordanian borders. That message had been brought by the Bedouin who was supposed to smuggle them across the border. Suspecting that this same Bedouin had sold out the couriers, Mohammad had ordered him killed as soon as the man left the house of his cell commander. The third courier may have been martyred or imprisoned by the Israelis - there was no way of knowing. Thanks to Allah the fourth courier passed safely into Egypt. The man who led him through the border, a long-trusted member of both Hamas and Islamic Jihad, was rewarded for bringing good news.

Suicide bombers were ready to strike. One had already been successful – that was another piece of good news. Moh
ammad did not know how many more were waiting or what their targets would be, but he was confident something would happen soon. He instructed his operatives to make sure that the strikes were effective: They must kill as many infidels as possible.

***

David Rothstein was surprised on Friday morning when his cousin called him at the hotel: “David, I have a proposition for you. Since our conversation last week I’ve been looking for something for you to do. I have good news: you have a selection of jobs. To be interviewed and to see what exactly is being offered, you need to go to the nearest branch of the Interior Ministry. That would be at the Azrieli mall. I will meet you there in about an hour, if this is convenient.”

“
You mean the Ministry has a job for me?” David was surprised.

“
No, no. They will issue you an ID card and a work permit. I have to be there to vouch for you, so that the whole process will be completed on the spot. Otherwise it may take a week. After you have your papers, we will go meet with people at a number of companies that are interested in your skills. If you will want still more options, we will go to Haifa.”

After a short pause David said: “I really appreciate this. Can’t I see what is available first and decide about the ID later?”

“Most of the jobs are somewhat sensitive and they will not talk to you unless you are committed, at least to the extent of getting an ID. The process of issuing an ID includes a basic security check, without which nobody will talk to you, which is why I need to vouch for you.”

“
We could meet in about an hour and a half, but Shabbat starts around six, so I’m not sure how much we can accomplish today.”

“
Okay. See you at the Ministry at 9:30.”

“
Wait a minute,” David hesitated. “Let me call you in thirty minutes. This is somewhat unexpected, and I want to talk it over with Rachel.”