The weather was fine and dry and the sun was shining on a warm Christmas Eve, warm even by Cretan standards. The slight wind was blowing up from the south-west, straight off of the Sahara Desert just three- hundred miles away, although it certainly was not summer. The tour bus was waiting as Mr. and Mrs. Farrah climbed down the steep roadway from their traditional style apartment on the cliff-side. The bus was only half full as only a few of the visitors had attended the welcome meeting the evening before, most had gathered in one of the resident's lounges to watch the television airing of the 'Real Nativity' transmitted from London. The couple, who both spoke perfect English, were accepted by the other passengers as the honeymoon couple they actually were. The tour set off at a few minutes after ten for the hour's journey to the Knossos site.
It was in fact just after eleven-thirty when they eventually arrived in the car park of the Knossos site, as they had been in a queue to get into the site for around twenty minutes. The site had become a major tourist attraction since the 'Revelation' had been made public the previous September, and the guided tours now included a glimpse of the entrance passageway to the control room, where even today UN researchers were unravelling the hundreds of thousands of recordings.
The couple showed a little impatience as the tour wound its way around the Knossos Palace and the newly discovered 'Labyrinth' beneath, enough for it to be noticed by one fellow tourist. After a hour the tour at last made its way out of the palace site to the new entrance, cut by Owen's laser-mole, which now had a staircase fitted. The group descended into the passageway and through some of the smaller chambers that were adorned by the friezes. At the far end of the passage, the guide stopped at the beautiful doors that guarded the Control Room', after a quick explanationm the guide started to retrace her steps back down the passage. The line of people performing a 'U'-turn so as to examine the doors and take photos. Mrs. Farrah, the last of the line, posed for a photograph in front of the doors as the other tourists made their way back to the entrance, leaving a twenty meter gap to the last tourist.
Zaid's camera flashed away as his wife pressed against the door behind her, the door moved and she gave Zaid a slight nod of her head. In the next instant the couple thrust forward into the room that contained all of the ancient equipment and the UN researchers. The reactions were slow as stunned researchers looked up from their work to see the two Iraqis charge into the chamber. The ingress had been timed perfectly, as by pure chance the single security man had just headed for the bath-room. The couple manoeuvred themselves as close to the centre of the room as possible then stopped and shouted in loud voices, “Allah is Great, praise His name,” then Zaid pressed the detonator button.
Nothing happened. Neither bomb detonated. Zaid stood there, with people running around like headless- chicken and diving behind any convenient shelter, with Zaid pressing the remote, over and over. The security guard, who was stopped on his trip to the bath-room, raised his automatic and fired, he tensed himself for the noise and the recoil, but none came, his gun would not fire either. After several clicks of the gun the guard threw it down and ran forward to the two terrorists, crashing into them with the full force of his body. The honeymoon couple fell to the ground, the remote detonator flying from Zaid's hand. Three of the UN researchers charged forward and restrained the couple, whilst a technician grabbed a handful of cable ties, and used them as restraints for the terrorists. Just then the tour guide opened the door to apologise for her charges intrusion and stopped, mouth agape, thinking that the response was a little disproportionate for a tourist's intrusion.
Someone shouted to her to call the police, as she saw the explosive vests being ripped off of the couple. The tour guide realising what had happened took to her heals for the exit.
The Cretan police arrived within fifteen minutes and formally arrested the pair, then a detachment of Greek Air Force security arrived just ten minutes after the police, sealing off the whole Knossos site. It was almost four in the afternoon when the group of tourists were allowed to leave for their hotel. Zaid and Fatema Farrah we taken to the Heraclion Police Headquarters, where they were interrogated whilst awaiting an EU antiterrorism detail to arrive from Rome. Word soon spread and reporters were waiting for the tourist group when they arrived back the Candia Resort Hotel. They found themselves staring on the days report from Crete, rather than watching it. They watched their interviews just before the penultimate episode of 'The Real Nativity'.
The Markson family together with all those members of the Trust's staff who didn't have anywhere better to be, had gathered for the Christmas holidays. Like Crete, some miles to the west, the weather was mild for the time of year, not weather for sitting around the pool all evening, but the staff lounge was filled with happy people. At ten o'clock the giant screen was switched on for the last but one episode of 'The Real Nativity' and everyone settled into seats to watch, as Declan Brook appeared on screen.
“Good evening, and a very joyous and peaceful Christmas to you wherever you are tonight. But before we run tonight's penultimate episode of 'The Real nativity' we have a news item, a very sad item considering the season. Now it's over to the News Room,” Declan's face disappeared and was replaced by one of the news-readers.
“This is Leonard Sugar with a breaking news report. Earlier today two people, thought to be either Iranian or Iraqi nationals, broke into the 'God Tapes' control centre and attempted to detonate two very powerful bombs. Thankfully neither of the bombs detonated and the male and female terrorists were arrested. A statement from the UN says that the two attackers are now in the hands of the EU security department in Rome, and it was found later that the two explosive devices were fully operational and that the pistol of a security guard also failed to operate within the complex. There were no casualties and the centre is operating normally. That's it for now, but we will bring you any updates as they happen. Now back to Declan and the Christmas Eve episode of 'The Real Nativity'.
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