Living day by day with a sword hanging over your head—that is the experience of the Jewish Israeli citizen. And while the attitudes of several neighboring states have upgraded from intense hatred to strong dislike due to the Abraham Accords, there are still plenty of countries who want nothing more than to see the State of Israel pushed into the sea. Chief amongst these enemies is Iran.
At some point, the radical Islamic regime in Iran made a truly brilliant tactical decision. Rather than face their enemies head-on, they invested heavily in the many terrorist militias in Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. Why invite direct military retaliation by Israel or Saudi Arabia by firing one of your own missiles when you can arm a small group of terrorists with a truck full of rockets or drones and let them bear the brunt of the payback?
Israel has been regularly dealing with these militias through surface-to-surface and air-to-ground strikes. Sadly, it has become routine. But what will elevate it all to the next level is if Iran is able to supply to several of these proxy militias dirty bombs or even small nuclear devices. Not only will there be the threat of a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile landing on a city, but there will be the very real danger of personally transportable devices being smuggled into a country that can kill thousands of people at a time. This is why Israel is so determined to ensure that Iran does not become a nuclear power.
It is this threat around which we have built this book. We recognize that it is quite possible that by the time this novel is published, Iran may have already joined the nuclear-armed club. However, we felt it was worth the literary risk in order to be able to communicate the wider danger that exists for Israel and other nations due to the lethal potential of Iran’s proxy militias.
Our hope is that as the reader enjoys this book, there will be three elements that will come through.
First, we want the reader to understand the risk surrounding a nuclear-equipped Iranian regime. If Iran achieves nuclear weapons, they will eventually find a way to use them one way or another.
Second, we want to shine a light on the extent the State of Israel in general and the Mossad in particular have gone through to slow down Iran’s nuclear progress. To that end we have written in a genre that mixes real and fictitious events. What you read about the two Natanz attacks and the one on the TESA factory in Karaj is accurate. Both the vault heist and the assassination of Dr. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh occurred very much as written. We only went off script when it was necessary to include our characters in the operations or when we needed to fill in holes that exist due to secrecy or a lack of information. The Mossad does occasionally make visits in order to strongly encourage foreign nationals who work for Iran’s nuclear program to upgrade their résumé and look for a new employer. The final operation is fictitious, but it is an example of what would be required should Israel determine that a great show of force was necessary in Iran.
Third, our desire is for the reader to witness the struggle and gradual transformation of a secular Jew from apathetic agnosticism to realizing that salvation is found through the true Messiah who has already come. Ultimately, the spiritual journey of Nir Tavor is similar to that of every person. We must recognize that all of us have sinned and that sin separates us from God. However, in His perfect love He sent His Son, Jesus the Messiah, to die on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus then rose again, opening the door for our future resurrection to an eternity with Him. There is nothing we can do to earn that forgiveness and eternal life. Thankfully, salvation does not come through works but is a free gift that is received by believing in Jesus Christ, inviting Him to become our Lord and Savior, and choosing to follow God with our lives. We trust that this truth will stand out above all others in this book.
Awaiting His return,
Amir Tsarfati
Steve Yohn