Into the Breach

Chapter 09 The Perfect Ambush

"Do not be first into battle but lure your enemy to gain something, and they will fight constantly, and you just have to resist them. It will make them tired and exhausted, while you will be full and energetic, then attack them and they can be easily destroyed."- Sun Tzu, Art of War

This was the ultimate doctrine of the Lebanese Armed Forces when they took the surprising decision to retreat from the Syro-Lebanese border into the confines of the Bekaa Valley. The already costly first phase of the war left the Syrian army exhausted and their supplies expended but they were given no time to rest as Syrian High Command wanted to push the advance and keep the Lebanese from regrouping and gathering for a counterattack that the Syrian army, whether they like it or not, would not be able to hold back.

January 2, 2033

The Syrian armoured spearhead broke into the Bekaa Valley uncontested but was a slow movement as the infantry they were supporting was already exhausted as is from the arduous march across the anti-Lebanon mountains and this forced pace was not making anything any better for them.

As they advanced deeper and deeper into the valley Syrian commanders became increasingly worried about the fact that no Lebanese battle-flags were seen at all and no resistance was met from the LAF, this concern made the Syrian officers begin to question orders and think of a retreat of their own to resupply and get the reinforcements they desperately needed to launch an attack.

The Syrian High Command reasoned however, that a retreat would only aggravate the situation, and give victory to the Lebanese. The war could only end with the integration of Lebanon into Syria and thus the "Syria or death" act was introduced to and ratified by the Syrian Assembly. Propaganda campaigns were ran on loop to the civilian population and fake letters were distributed to the soldiers, claiming to be from their families, who were begging them to keep going for a United Syria.

Lebanon however, had other plans.

The Syrian Advance slowed to a grinding halt as they reached the gates of Baalbek and prepared for yet another siege. However, this was exactly what Lebanon had planned, the Lebanese Army sprung into action. Armoured spearheads harassed the Syrian flanks and rears as the infantry pinned the Syrians down. Then, the Lebanese started forcing the Syrian troops backwards, back into the mountains they came from.

January 5th, 2033

On the Morning of the fourth day of January 2033 echoing sounds of automatic gunfire, mortar and other forms of artillery fire filled the region of the Bekaa Valley as Lebanese soldiers charged the exhausted Syrian lines, those lines were too tired to pick up their rifles.

Even though the Syrians were outclassed, outnumbered, outgunned and even outfed they continued to fight throughout that day, the propaganda had its effect and while as much as 40% of the army surrendered, the majority either fought to the death, or attempted the perilous journey across the mountains to return home, more often than not, only to find death.

With a clear Lebanese victory that wiped out the Syrian Army, the L.H.C (Lebanese High Command) reestablished full control over the Bekaa Valley and the border region, occupying on the presage certain disputed areas recognized generally as part of Syria, such as Mazraet Deir al-Ashayer. They did not however, cross into undisputed Syrian territory, leaving that to the Syrian militias they had armed.

The fate of this senseless war was closed, as this mass surrender left a bleeding wound in the already stretched thin Syrian defences.

February 1ST 2033

The dawn of the new month brought bad and even worse news for Syria, while the Democratic Syrian Advance was slow, giving the government in Damascus time to conscript and reassemble an army to hold the lines, disaster struck in the northeast of the country.