- "Five years ago, I lost 30,000 men in the blink of an eye. And the world just fuckin' watched."
- — General Shepherd
The Basra Nuclear Attack was a major battle and subsequent nuclear attack that occurred in 2011. The Battle portion saw U.S Marines invading the city of Basra, Iraq to capture OpFor leader Khaled Al-Asad. Following this was a nuclear detonation within the city, from Al-Asad's Palace.
Overview[]
Prior to the events of the U.S invasion, Al-Asad's forces have already taken over and fortified the city in preparation for an attack, as with several other cities already invaded by the U.S. Eventually, at 18:00:00 (6:00pm), United States Marines began to invade the city using aerial support to kill enemy ground forces, allowing for tanks to invade.
Initial Invasion[]
The beginning of the U.S invasion sees an immediate and heavy hit to the forces, attempting to capture Al-Asad in a quick manner. Hundreds of helicopters, armed with machine guns and automatic grenade launchers, invade to eliminate tanks, BMPs, anti-aircraft installations, and RPG units in the city streets and rooftops.
Alongside air forces, a number of ground armor is actively entering the city. Entire tank forces can be seen moving through the desert outside of the city, and later driving through the streets.
Happening concurrently to both of these, Seal-Team 6 and N.E.S.T forces, with the help of the Marines, raid Al-Asad's Palace to capture him. It is later found that he is not on the premises, however a timed Nuclear Explosive is in the area, resulting in the following detonation.
Much of the militants in the city are completely helpless to the attack, as they are severely outnumbered. Additionally, the aged weaponry and rusting tanks used by Al-Asad's forces hardly compare to swarms of helicopters armed with explosives, and thousands of Marines using modern weaponry.
Advanced Recon Rescue[]
Shortly after the initial invasion, a U.S Recon team has become under attack by several militants. One a green flare is used to signal help, a 1st Force Reconnaissance helicopter is dispatched to assist and rescue them.
During the rescue, Seal-Team 6 identifies a possible nuclear threat in Al-Asad's palace and all personal are advised to evacuate from the city until N.E.S.T operatives are able to disarm the weapon.
Downed Pilot Rescue[]
Following the rescue of the recon team, an AH-1 Cobra, Deadly is shot down by enemy forces near Sgt. Paul Jackson's location. Knowing the risk, Outlaw Two-Five requests permission to go back and save the pilot, currently under attack. A successful search and rescue is conducted to save the pilot. Once the team arrives back at their transport helicopter, the threat is escalated to a probable nuclear threat at the palace, causing forces to be immediately evacuated.
Nuclear Detonation[]
As dozens of U.S. aircraft are evacuating the danger area due, it is finally confirmed that there is a nuclear threat in the palace and all forces are immediately ordered to get out of the blast zone. Very shortly after, a blinding fireball shoots into the sky as the bomb detonates. This causes almost all of the invasion forces to be destroyed in the air and crash somewhere in the city.
Due to the extreme severity of the explosion, any residents of the city that were still in hiding or area around the city are most likely killed or severely burned and injured. Similarly, thousands of OpFor soldiers that were fighting off U.S. Marines in the city would be killed in the detonation.
A small number of forces on both sides that were residing in tanks and IFVs/APCs could have survived the explosion. This would have required them to be outside of the initial fireball. The heavy armor of tanks could provide protection from the extreme pressure, and ventilation systems cooling the inside of the hull and its operators and some of the effects of radiation. However IFVs/APCs may protect its users from the explosion, the effects of extreme heat and radiation would have most likely killed them if the vehicle was operational and unable to continue fleeing.
Aftermath[]
Due to the unexpected nuclear explosion, this strike's a loss for both sides, and a minor victory for the Ultranationalists.
The U.S suffers what can be seen as the most severe of losses. A number exceeding 30,000 U.S marines were killed in the attack. Hundreds of tanks and helicopters were immediately destroyed in the detonation, and any that survived are most likely buried under debris. Although not affiliated with the U.S. Marines, tens of thousands of civilians are most likely killed that were within the city or in the surrounding outskirts.
OpFor suffers losses in terms of soldiers, armor, and territory. Due to the explosion irradiating and destroying the city and surrounding area, this entire area cannot be occupied by Al-Asad's forces. Any soldiers that were in the area are most likely killed due to a lack of proper radiation protection, or proper armor/shelter. Additionally, any tanks, armoured vehicles or helicopters in the area were left in inoperable condition.
Finally, the Ultranationalists receive a minor victory in the attack. The death of thousands of Marines in the city would change geopolitics in a way that allowed them to manipulate it to their advantage. A significant example of this would be Shepherd, filled with rage to avenge those who died in the attack. Shepherd would ultimately go to extremely unethical means to accomplish this goal, allowing Makarov to further manipulate his actions.
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