The Iran Hostage Crisis

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In January 1979, Iranians opposed to the Shah’s rule invaded the American embassy in Tehran and held a group of 52 American diplomats and other hostages for 444 days. The Shah left Iran and the victorious Ayatollah Khomeini returned that February. Of the approximately 90 people inside the embassy, 52 remained in captivity until the end of the crisis. The reputation of the Ayatollah Khomeini and the hostage taking was further enhanced with the failure of a hostage rescue attempt that cost lives. The Ayatollah Khomeini set forth several demands to be met prior to the release of the hostages. The US had options of their own; however, the risk to the hostages required the utmost consideration. In order to secure their freedom, outgoing President Jimmy Carter agreed to several demands, to include, releasing 8 billion dollars in frozen Iranian assets. Due to the ongoing negotiations on both sides, an agreement was reached and the hostages were freed. President Carter left the oval office on January 21, 1981 after Regan’s Inauguration and flew overseas to meet with the freed hostages.

The Iran Hostage Crisis of 1979

President Carter’s New Year’s 1979 toast to the Shah at a state dinner in Tehran, announcing that he was "an island of stability in one of the more troubled areas of the world”, set the tone of the stance the United States had with the Shah which indicated support (Wright, 2011, 2010). This led to The Iran Hostage Crisis that lasted 444 days, in which Carter allowed an ally, the ostracized Shah, to break away from Iran and fly to New York to receive medical care for his cancer. His flight from Iran allowed him to avoid the Iranian Revolution. As a result, militants invaded the US Embassy in Tehran, capturing 66...

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Iran Hostage Crisis. (2010). Conservapedia. Retrieved July 28, 2011, from http://www.conservapedia.com/Iran_Hostage_Crisis

Iran hostage crisis. (2011). Wikipedia. Retrieved June 5, 2011, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_hostage_crisis

Wright, R. (2011,2010). Our man in Tehran: the true story behind the sectret mission to save six Americans during the Iran Hostage Crisis and the foreign ambassador who worked with the CIA to bring them home. Retrieved from http://mylibrary.wilmu.edu:2071/WebZ/FSPage?pagename=excerpt:sessionid=fsappl1-35...

Norton, J. J., & Collins, M. H. (1981). Reflections on the Iranian Hostage Settlement. American Bar Association Journal, 67, 428-433.

Rose, M. (1998). The Iranian Hostage Rescue Mission. In Risk-Taking in International Politics (pp. 45-75). Retrieved from http://www.press.umich.edu/pdf/0472108670-03.pdf

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