Chapter 484 The same goal
The battle for Tal Rifat continues and has begun to reach a fever pitch.
With the support of Turkey, the Free Army has been supplemented with precious heavy weapons. The artillery battle between the two sides is almost endless. Every 30 minutes, the artillery shells from both sides will streak across the sky and fall at the location they set or expected. on the ground outside.
At the same time, NATO's bombing of the city also increased to a higher level, from once a day to twice or even three times a day.
They seem to want to use all the unused inventory of ammunition on the Libyan battlefield at the heads of the Syrian government forces, whether it is ordinary aerial bombs, old Tomahawks, or AGM-130s.
In short, almost all valuable targets on the ground had been destroyed. By the end of the explosion, Chen Chen didn't even know what they were trying to do.
bridge? highway? Power station?
Completely non-existent.
Chen Chen even witnessed them throwing a MK84 with an explosion yield close to 1 ton on the head of a machine gun bunker that was only garrisoned by 4 people, as if it was not a "machine gun bunker" but some kind of "drop hammer with a heavy reinforced turret" Bunker".
Obviously, NATO is also in a period of strategic confusion at this time.
It’s not that they don’t have the ability to bomb other areas in Syria, but the problem is that with insufficient ground forces, even if you bomb Damascus to the ground, what positive results can you achieve?
The Free Army still couldn't get through, and it was difficult for other scattered rebels to organize a successful offensive.
Rather than doing that, it is better to focus on Tal Rifaat, which has in fact become a "focus battlefield", weaken the power of the government forces as much as possible, and open a path for the Free Army to continue moving south.
Unfortunately, their strategy did not achieve the desired results.
Two days after the arrival of the 104th Armored Brigade, the S-125 missiles they carried achieved their first success.
An F-16 fighter jet was hit by concentrated fire and eventually crashed near Azaz controlled by the Free Army.
The achievements in air defense warfare greatly boosted the morale of the government forces. Taking advantage of the short "vacuum period", the Syrian Air Force's MiG series fighters quickly dispatched, and after paying the loss of 4 aircraft, successfully destroyed 12 Free Army tanks, and The Free Army, which was already pressing down on the border, once again forced out of the city of Tal Rifaat.
The two warring parties once again fell into a brief confrontation, and in this situation, whether it was the government forces, the Free Army, or NATO led by the United States, they had to start considering exerting force from other angles.
However, at this time, Chen Chen did not think much about this issue that was beyond his ability.
He doesn't yet know how the rebels will fight, or whether NATO plans to continue to be deeply involved - of course, in fact, he doesn't care much.
What he was more concerned about was what the man named Suhail Hassan, sitting on the sofa in front of him, wanted to say to him.
Looking into Suhail's eyes, Chen Chen said in a calm voice:
"I heard that you have been removed from all military positions and have lost your command in Tal Rifaat."
"It's good news and proves that what we're doing has been recognized by some of the higher-ups."
"Then our cooperation should be able to go further next."
"So I'm curious, what exactly are you going to discuss when you come to me today?"
Hearing Chen Chen's words, Suhail's face showed a surprised expression.
He asked subconsciously:
"Why do you think this is good news?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
Chen Chen asked in shock:
"If I really plan to deal with you, you should be in the military court now, not sitting across from me."
"To pull you down from your original position when you are at the cusp of the storm is not a suppression at all, but a kind of protection."
"To be honest, this logic is too simple. It's so simple that if you ask me this, it's as if I'm a fool in your mind."
As the words fell, Suhail couldn't help but laugh.
Then, he answered:
"Yes, you are right. This logic is too simple and obvious."
"Then, now that you understand my situation, I don't need to hide it anymore."
"As you might imagine, I have high-level protection - frankly speaking, it's General Issam and the power groups behind him."
"I lost command of Tal Rifat, but not because I was no longer trusted."
"It's because they have more important things that they need me to do."
"I have to form a special operations force in the near future - not a special force in the traditional sense, but one with stronger combat effectiveness and more flexible combat methods than ordinary teams, and one that can perform tasks that ordinary troops cannot perform. force."
"A professional guerrilla force with heavy firepower."
Chen Chen revealed what Suhail really wanted. The latter nodded without hesitation and praised:
"That's why I'm willing to work with you."
“It’s so enjoyable to talk to smart people, I don’t even have to express my full thoughts.”
Having said this, Suhail paused for a moment, and then continued:
"No offense, but I did check your background."
"Of course, I'm not referring to certain backgrounds that you don't want to reveal and cannot reveal, but your specific past combat experiences."
"You have gained a great reputation in Southeast Asia. Perhaps most people will focus on your amazing combat effectiveness and special equipment usage."
"But my focus is different than theirs."
"I noticed one thing - you can always rely on local breakthroughs to promote changes in the entire battle situation."
"It was like this when I was in Indonesia, and it was like this when I was in Pubei."
"I carefully studied your development process in Pubei and summarized some key nodes."
"Then I came to a conclusion."
"Capturing Myitkyina and Kachin is definitely not the pinnacle of your tactics. The assassination of those two militia generals is."
"In an extremely dangerous moment, you relied on this assassination to completely open up the situation and lay the foundation for the development of the Dongfeng Corps."
"You, or at least you, are geniuses in this area."
"And what I need is a genius like you."
"How about you cooperate with me?"
"I know your purpose in getting involved in this war. As long as you cooperate with me, I guarantee that you can achieve your purpose in a more convenient way."
Suhail's expression was sincere and his tone was earnest. He looked into Chen Chen's eyes and waited quietly for Chen Chen's answer.
Chen Chen, on the other hand, did not dodge. After looking at Suhail for a long time, he finally said:
"This team of yours cannot be a guerrilla force."
"Your main form of combat can be 'guerrilla', but you can't just have 'guerrilla'."
"What's the meaning?"
"You need to have the authority to mobilize support, especially air support."
After the words fell, Suhail's expression instantly became complicated.
".You want to make my army into another Rangers?"
"You can be."
"Air supremacy is a problem. Most of the entire Syrian air defense system has been destroyed. Our fighter jets are far less advanced than the enemy. Blindly mobilizing the air force will only bring unnecessary losses."
Suhail frowned tightly, but before he could finish speaking, Chen Chen interrupted again:
"You are not qualified to talk about battle losses."
"To be honest, when NATO has complete control of the air, every time your aircraft achieves a victory, it will be profitable."
"As for every time a target is destroyed, does it make a difference whether the cost is a few aircraft, dozens of aircraft, or hundreds of aircraft?"
".you're right."
Suhail took a deep breath and continued to ask:
"What else? Other requirements? For example, your conditions?"
"Someone will negotiate terms with you."
Chen Chen shook his head and said instead:
"But before your team is officially established, we still have one thing to do."
"Kill 24 STS."
"What I mean is, kill them all, and their support, during their next breakout!"
At the same time, within the siege area.
Wade's wounds have begun to heal and he has regained most of his mobility.
Looking at the picture returned by the drone, he sighed deeply, and then said to Finch:
"As we expected, the battle in Tel Rifat has reached a stalemate."
"The bombing has not achieved unexpected results, and the government forces still have the strength to confront the Free Army."
"What's worse is that the government forces took the initiative to turn Tal Rifaat into an isolated island."
"They may even continue to be in a stalemate with the Free Army for more than a month without relying on other support."
"We can't wait a month, and the Free Army can't wait a month."
"This time, we really have to withdraw."
"No matter what the price is, no matter how many people can successfully evacuate in the end, we have to give it a try."
"Finch, make your decision."
"If you can't make a decision, give command to me."
"If you want to go to a military court, I will do it for you."
After hearing Wade's words, Finch nodded slowly.
After a while, he looked up at the team members gathered around him. After scanning for a week, he said:
"Wade is right, we have to go."
"I would call in air support and a day later we would be airborne."
"I have to say, a lot of people are going to die in the evacuation, I don't know who's going to die here, but I have to say, you all need to be prepared."
"Fear of death will hinder your actions and reduce your combat effectiveness."
"The consequences of fear are greater casualties."
"So, I hope you will remember that this is not a failed retreat."
"This was an assault from the inside, just like every mission we've had before."
"Our enemies will be many, but our goals will be"
"Kill them all!"
On the other side, outside Tal Rifat.
A team wearing desert camouflage and holding the iconic AK-74M assault rifle lurked behind the sand dunes, approaching the city little by little.
They didn't use any vehicles. If anyone spotted them from the air, they would probably wonder how they got here.
After all, they were less than 600 meters away from the urban area of Tal Rifaat at this time, and behind them was a battle zone that was tightly defended and monitored by heavy firepower.
——
Of course, the correct answer to this question is not surprising.
In fact, before the battle of Tal Rifaat officially started, they were already lurking in the small town of Sheikh Issa, 3 kilometers away.
After the fighting between the two sides reached a fever pitch, they followed the fighting fronts of both sides moving westward little by little, and relied on the extremely primitive and ancient method of "digging sand pits" to lurk in the blank area between the frontline positions and the city. For 7 whole days.
At the beginning, they did not have a very clear goal. They were only responsible for monitoring the movements of the Free Army operating nearby, tracking the movement trajectories of key targets, and providing on-the-spot reconnaissance information for possible subsequent beheading operations.
However, with the disclosure of a piece of information, their mission finally changed.
It is no longer a simple reconnaissance, but has turned into the most dangerous and challenging "confrontation operation".
At this time, the team had marched to the predetermined position, and all the team members fell silently on the sand. Then, the observer took out the high-magnification thermal imaging telescope behind him and began to carefully observe the situation in the city.
The leader of this team, a Russian with extremely obvious features, used the dim light of a flashlight to check the battle map in front of him and said:
"The situation is basically clear. The two dozen people from 24 STS are in the encirclement."
"The specific location is unknown, but based on what I know about them, there is a high probability that they will be scattered and lurking in the most central and edge buildings."
"It's not that easy to catch them all, but the good news is that they should be retreating soon."
"The early warning aircraft has detected the movement of the Turkish Air Force. It is obvious that the Turkish Air Force will be responsible for the subsequent evacuation."
"For us, this is simply good news. We can open fire on them and their reinforcements without restraint."
"The only problem is that we cannot lock the enemy's position purely by relying on our own strength."
"So, we must cooperate with the Syrian government forces and the Dongfeng Corps that are still in the city."
"They will provide us with guidance and approach reconnaissance, and we must complete the work of interception, strike and annihilation."
"It won't be easy because 24 STS is definitely not a team that can be taken lightly and we have to be prepared to make sacrifices."
"Remember, don't be soft-hearted and don't have any worries."
"We have only one goal."
"That means, kill all the Americans in sight!"