The situation on Jakob is quite a lot worse than most people believe. During
the first stages of the rebellion, the rebels employed an number of nuclear
devices to destroy five of the seven Karadzian warships in the system. They
were also able to seize control of the vital planetary defence sites. The
Karadzian response was quite brutal. A major naval taskforce was dispatched
and a lengthy orbital bombardment used to reduce both the captured planetary
defence sites and the major population centres. At least twenty of Jakob's
major cities were wiped out with nuclear strikes. However the bombardment
force also suffered heavy losses (at least six ships).

Since the initial uprising, the Karadzians have regained control of the
surviving population centres; but their control of the countryside remains
tenuous. The rebels enjoy widespread support amongst the population and are
a continuing problem for the Karadzians. Enterprising ship captains still
make very healthy profits by smuggling weapons and supplies to the rebels,
using the endemic corruption in the Karadzic Empire to get past the Empire's
interdiction force. The rebellion is noted for the extreme level of brutality
on both sides.
