Chapter 38: Fierce Attack

On the Middle East battlefield, because the Chinese team participated in the battle, the Israeli army's offensive operations were repeatedly postponed. It was not until the early morning of the 17th that Baram received a message from the Prime Minister that three carrier-based aviation corps of the US Navy would arrive in the morning, and decided to launch another attack on the morning of the 17th.

At this time, three assault clusters of the 15th Army had entered Jordan.

Because strategic air transport will start on the afternoon of the 17th, Jiang Bowen did not allow the troops to advance south, but only controlled the bridgehead in the border area of ​​Jordan and Syria, extended the Syrian defense line to the south for dozens of kilometers, and created a protruding part about twenty kilometers long and thirty kilometers wide on the right wing of the Israeli army. Judging from the situation at that time, what Jiang Bowen was most worried about was that the Israeli army adjusted its plan and turned to attack Amman south. The combat effectiveness of the Israeli army was still very strong, and the Jordanian army was definitely not its opponent, so it was possible to take Amman in one fell swoop.

Obviously, this is very bad for the next battle.

At that time, Qi Kaiwei had already telegrammed Jiang Bowen not to put pressure on the Israeli army, because in his plan, he had to defend Amman and threaten the Israeli army's rear. When the Israeli army penetrates deep into Syria and the 15th Army launches a counterattack, Amman will play a crucial role.

Jiang Bowen was also very clear about this, so he did not put pressure on the Israeli army.

However, Jiang Bowen also kept a hand in defense deployment.

In fact, the situation on the battlefield was a bit complicated at that time, mainly because the Israeli army delayed the attack time, which forced Jiang Bowen to have some concerns.

You should know that according to the previous plan, the Israeli army should cross the border between Josia and Syria on the night of the 16th.

In the early morning of the 17th, Jiang Bowen once believed that the Israeli army had given up its plan to attack Syria, but was preparing to sweep the entire Jordan southward and consolidate the right-wing defense line. To put it bluntly, the Israeli army had already given up its strategic offensive plan because the Chinese team participated in the war and turned to strategic defense. In this way, the 15th Army that continued to stay at Jabir Station would miss the opportunity, which was equivalent to handing over Amman to the Israeli army.

In response to this, Jiang Bowen did not allow the Syrian army to enter Jordan.

To put it bluntly, if the defense line of Jabir Station is too strong, the Israeli army will definitely adjust its combat plan. Only by believing that the Israeli army can make a breakthrough can the Israeli army continue to adopt the previous combat plan, break into Syria from Jabir Station, and enter the trap set by Jiang Bowen.

Of course, Jiang Bowen was overthinking.

According to the information disclosed after the war, although on the night of the 16th, several of Baram's staff members mentioned that the 15th Army was likely to set up a trap on the north side of the border between Joshuai, that is, southwest of Suveda Province. The previous combat plan was meaningless. We should first take Amman and then head north. Moreover, Baram did consider this plan, and even sent staff to the front line to understand the situation so as to know if it was possible to turn the main attacking force. However, in the early morning of the 17th, after learning that the US Navy Air Force was about to participate in the war, Baram did not hesitate anymore and still insisted on the original combat plan and let the main attacking force launch an attack on the morning of the 17th.

Later, many people thought that this was the most serious mistake Baram made.

Some people even believe that if Baram adjusts his combat plan on the night of the 16th, even if he only uses one brigade, he will be very sure to win Amman on the 17th and eliminate the threat from the rear. However, this has little impact on the frontal offense, but the benefits are extremely obvious. In the eyes of these people, if Baram does this, even if the Israeli army encounters setbacks in the offensive, they can retreat to the border line of Ye Syria and defend the right-wing front.

Of course, this statement is simply untenable.

Even if the Israeli army captured Amman on the 17th, it would not be possible to avoid the right wing being encircled, because these Israeli players ignored an extremely important factor: China's strategic air transport power.

From the traditional tactics, Amman does have great military value, because it is the center of the transportation hub in Jordan. Three-quarters of the railway lines and highways that run through Jordan have to pass through Amman, and the other quarter also have to pass near Amman. Therefore, controlling Amman is equivalent to controlling the major traffic artery in Jordan. The problem is that the Chinese team has proved with their actions that the ground traffic line is no longer the line of offense. When necessary, the Chinese Army has the ability to fight a ground war that does not rely on the traffic line.

You should know that when the war broke out, the Chinese Air Force had equipped hundreds of large electric transport aircraft.

Judging from the subsequent development of the battle situation, at the latest by early December, the Chinese Air Force will be able to place two-thirds of its strategic airlift force on the Middle East battlefield. If the Chinese Navy seizes sea control and opens up the waterway to the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf, this strategic airlift force can use Iraq and Egypt as bases to increase the airlift efficiency several times. Even if it is based on Pakistan, it can support two to three armies to fight on the front line, and can also provide support for ten tactical aviation corps at the same time to ensure that the Chinese Army has no worries on the Middle East battlefield.

In this way, it would be meaningless for the Israeli army to occupy Amman.

You should know that in Jordan, there are not only Amman. More importantly, if necessary, the Chinese Army’s ground forces can open field airports on the front line at any time. Don’t forget that the Middle East is mainly desert-based, and there are enough areas suitable for opening field airports.

According to the information disclosed after the war, long before the 13th Army entered the Middle East, Qi Kaiwei formulated a backup combat plan. The main content was that the 13th Army's combat operations in Syria were blocked. The Israeli army defended the border defense line and had to open up a new front. In this plan, Qi Kaiwei clearly mentioned that it would either use Saudi Arabia, or send troops from the western region of Iraq to enter Jordan from the east, encircle the Israeli right-wing defense line, and after controlling Amman, it entered Israel from the Jordan Valley. At that time, the only thing that was not certain was the issue of force, that is, whether it was necessary to invest in the second main army on the battlefield in the Middle East. However, this was also a small problem. After all, Qi Kaiwei had mobilized the 333rd Reserve Army, and in December, he would definitely have the ability to mobilize another army. Even if the 333rd Reserve Army was allowed to enter Egypt, he would have enough troops.

It can be seen from this that even if the Israeli army seized Amman, they could not defend the right-wing defense line.

Judging from the situation at that time, Baram did not miss the opportunity, but was trying to get it. The reason is very simple. Baram has a very clear understanding. The key to the Israeli army's victory is whether it can reach Damascus as soon as possible, control the southern Syrian region, and force China to continue to increase its troops to Syria. If it cannot be done, even if the Israeli army occupy the entire Jordan, it can only stretch the long line and create a counterattack opportunity for the Chinese team.

Strategically speaking, only by capturing Damascus as soon as possible can the Israeli army continue to take the initiative.

It can be seen from this that Jiang Bowen and Balam both had relatively accurate judgments at that time. One knew that the other must attack, and the other must defend.

In the early morning of the 17th, with the full cover and support of the Air Force, the Israeli army launched an attack.

Because the Syrian army did not enter Jordan, the Chinese team guarding Jabir Station fought and retreated. While trying every means to delay the Israeli army's advancement speed through tactical counterattacks, they retreated from the protruding part to the border defense line between J&S and Syria, and finally retreated to the rear of the Syrian position in one breath.

It was almost noon, and it took the Yijun five hours to advance more than 30 kilometers.

Compared with the previous offensive speed, the Israeli army's attack in this round was significantly slower and suffered much greater losses.

According to the combat records of the IDF, in the battle to capture Jabir Station, a total of more than 300 main battle tanks and more than 200 armored combat vehicles were lost. The artillery deployed in the rear was suddenly counterattacked by the China National Team. More than a dozen artillery positions were destroyed and hundreds of long-range artillery were lost.

In the Israeli army's war report, the losses of the Chinese team were not mentioned.

In fact, in the battle that morning, the loss of the Chinese team was minimal. Only more than a dozen anti-armored platforms were destroyed by the Israeli army, and only three were too close to the front and forced to abandon them. The rest were towed away by armored repair troops and repaired in a few days.

At that time, the biggest feeling of the Israeli army's front-line commander was that China's anti-armor platform was not easy to deal with.

For example, in a battle southwest of Jabir Station, six anti-armor platforms relying on simple positions made an Israeli-strengthening armored battalion lose two-thirds of its main combat equipment within two hours, and in the end, the Chinese team took the initiative to retreat, otherwise the Israeli army would suffer greater losses.

Of course, this is not entirely a problem with the Israeli army ground forces.

During the battle that morning, the Israeli Air Force still did not seize air supremacy, and even had to give up the strike mission that had been arranged long ago and compete with the Chinese Air Force for air supremacy. At around 11 o'clock, the Israeli army entered Jabir Station. Within the most intense hour of the battle, the Israeli Air Force did not even provide air support, resulting in the Israeli ground forces having to fight alone.

After a arduous battle, the Israeli army finally captured Jabir Station and opened the door to Syria.

However, during these five hours of battle, the three Israeli brigades, including the First Infantry Brigade, were almost crippled, and their opponents were just three assault clusters with a total force equivalent to half of the Israeli brigade. What's worse, the Israeli army had lost the momentum to continue to advance north.

After one o'clock in the afternoon, the U.S. Navy Air Force participated in the war.

Only at this time will the battlefield situation change. At least with the support of the US military, the Israeli Air Force has the ability to provide limited air support to ground forces.

Of course, the Chinese team also successfully retreated to the rear of the Syrian military defense line.

According to the battle report sent back by Jiang Bowen that afternoon, in the battle on the morning of the 17th, only more than 40 officers and soldiers of the 13th Army suffered casualties, with minimal losses.

Next, it depends on whether the Syrian army can defend the defense line.

According to Jiang Bowen's arrangement, the Syrian Defense Forces must hold on the defense line for twelve hours, because the 13th Army needs these twelve hours to complete the deployment. Next, even if the Syrian army can defend, it must take the initiative to retreat, but the Israeli army cannot expand its breakthrough.

If everything goes well, the final battle will begin in the early morning of the 18th.

The question is, can the Syrian army hold on for twelve hours?

On the afternoon of the 17th, Mu Haoyang also received a crucial piece of information: US Navy Air Force fighter jets appeared on the Middle East battlefield.

Chapter 38: Fierce Attack
Chapter completed!