All is Bright – by AlaskanFan
A Christmas episode for Season 3. In "Santa's Got a Brand New Bag" (Season 4), Lee references their Christmas tradition of being trapped in a "nest of killers" and Dotty exclaims that "Just once, I would like to have my daughter home on time on Christmas Eve." Those two comments just begged for some fan fiction covering Christmas for Seasons 2 and 3. My story "A Surprising Package" covered Season 2, but the two stories stand alone.
Setting: Season 3
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Enterprises own these wonderful characters. All I get from writing about them is the chance to visit with Lee and Amanda from time to time.
All is Bright – by AlaskanFan
PROLOGUE
On June 14, 1985, TWA flight #847 was hijacked following takeoff from Athens, Greece. American and Jewish passengers were singled out for harsh treatment by the terrorists. Various passengers were beaten and 40 were taken hostage for 2 weeks. One American, a Navy SEAL, was killed. The Lebanese terrorists achieved the release of political prisoners from Greece and Israel, and walked away without prosecution.
On October 7,1985, the Achille Lauro was hijacked by Palestinian terrorists while it was in Egyptian waters. The only murder victim was American.
American outrage over the lack of justice in the TWA hijacking prompted a strong American response to the terrorism involving the Achille Lauro. President Reagan ordered the Navy's SEAL Team Six and Delta Force to be on "stand by" for a possible rescue attempt of the hostages aboard the ship.
Egypt was squeezed between its Arab neighbors, who urged leniency towards the terrorists, and its Western allies, who urged harsh reprisals. Egypt negotiated the release of the ship and all passengers (except for the murdered American, of course), in exchange for providing a safe flight to Tunisia for the hijackers (which would again prevent prosecution).
American fighter aircraft intercepted the Egyptian flight and forced it to land at a NATO airbase in Sicily, Italy. At this point, the Italian government claimed jurisdiction over the hijackers (since the ship was registered in Italy) and resisted American military attempts to take the terrorists into U.S. custody. There was a tense stand-off as American forces surrounded the plane and Italian forces surrounded the Americans while their respective governments disputed prosecution. The U.S. forces were assured that the terrorists would be tried for murder so they agreed to let the Italians take charge. In the process, some terrorists were allowed to return to Tunisia without penalty. Like Egypt, the Italian government was caught in a vice trying to balance Arabic interests with American interests.
The Egyptian government was outraged that their negotiations with the terrorists had been overturned by American actions. The Italian government was divided and left in turmoil over the controversial management of the issue. No one was satisfied with the outcome.
On November 23, 1985, EgyptAir Flight #648 was hijacked by a Palestinian splinter group, the same aircraft that had been diverted to the NATO airbase in October. This time the flight landed on the island of Malta. Again, American and Jewish passengers were identified for brutal treatment. One American and one Israeli were killed. Two Americans and one Israeli were shot but survived. American assistance in the tense situation was refused. The crisis was badly mismanaged and 58 people died in the incident. The remaining 37 passengers and crew sustained various injuries.
Media around the Mediterranean managed to report the incidents in a way that spread the blame in varying degrees between the terrorists and the Americans.
Meanwhile, an exclusive group of black robed men in Tehran, Iran debated how to best chasten "The Great Satan." Iran was a significant world player in financing terrorism and its goals included destabilizing the Middle East, eliminating Israel ("The Little Satan") and terminating the involvement of the United States ("The Great Satan") in Middle Eastern affairs.
In mid-October, one voice rose above all others, commanding attention, "I have a plan that will bring The Great Satan to its knees and cause The Little Satan to tremble. Hijacking? Bombing? Pfft – they mean nothing to The Great Satan. We will take the battle to their soil. They will learn to keep out of our business."