The Iran Hostage Crisis: 444 Days of Tension, Diplomacy, and Rescue Attempts

Daniel Holland
Nov 4, 2024
7 min read

Updated: Nov 4

Protesters burn a U.S. flag, hands raised, amid smoke. Others, some blindfolded, walk solemnly. Background: clear blue sky.

On a chilly Sunday morning in Tehran, 4 November 1979, a crowd gathered outside the United States Embassy. What began as a protest turned into one of the longest hostage crises in modern history. By nightfall, more than sixty Americans were being held captive, blindfolded and bound, inside the sprawling embassy compound. Outside, thousands chanted “Death to America,” waving banners of Ayatollah Khomeini, the new spiritual leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution.

For 444 days, those hostages became unwilling players in a geopolitical drama that changed the course of U.S.–Iran relations forever. What made the event so shocking wasn’t just the violence, but what it represented: decades of resentment towards American involvement in Iran, boiling over after years of political interference. The story of the Iran Hostage Crisis is not one of simple villainy or heroism, but of revolution, miscalculation, and the enduring struggle between national pride and international power.

After an initial, smaller group of students took control of the embassy, thousands more Iranians scaled the gates of the embassy grounds over the course of the day, many chanting “Death to America!”

Setting the Stage: Iran Before the Storm

To understand the events of November 1979, it helps to go back several decades. Iran in the mid-20th century was caught between tradition and modernity, between the desires of its people and the influence of foreign powers. In 1953, the United States and the United Kingdom orchestrated a coup to remove Iran’s democratically elected prime minister, Mohammad Mossadegh, after he tried to nationalise the country’s oil industry. The coup restored the young Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, to power — a move that left a deep scar on Iranian memory.

The Shah, while hailed in the West as a moderniser, ruled as an autocrat. He repressed political opposition, crushed dissent through his secret police, SAVAK, and aligned himself closely with Washington. American advisors poured into Tehran to modernise the army, police, and economy. Iran’s oil money fuelled rapid growth, but the wealth was unevenly distributed, and the religious and working classes saw the Shah as a puppet of Western interests.

In addition to the embassy’s diplomatic staff, a security detail of U.S. Marines was also captured. By the end of the day, students took 63 Americans hostage.

By the late 1970s, revolution was in the air. Inflation, corruption, and authoritarian rule had driven the population to breaking point. When Ayatollah Khomeini, a cleric exiled for criticising the Shah, returned from France in early 1979, millions of Iranians greeted him as a saviour. Within weeks, the Shah fled the country.

The Islamic Republic of Iran was born, and the once-powerful alliance between Tehran and Washington was in ruins.

Under Khomeini’s direction, 13 of the hostages—five women and eight Black men—were released.

Humanitarian Decision That Ignited a Firestorm

The immediate trigger for the hostage crisis came a few months later, when President Jimmy Carter agreed to allow the Shah, who was suffering from cancer, to enter the United States for medical treatment. To American eyes, it was a humanitarian gesture. But to the revolutionary leadership in Iran, it looked like history repeating itself — a reminder of 1953, when the CIA helped restore the Shah to the throne after his first exile.

Anti-American demonstrations erupted in Tehran. Protesters accused Washington of plotting another coup to reinstall the Shah. The U.S. Embassy, long seen as a symbol of interference, became a target. On 4 November, a group of students calling themselves the “Muslim Student Followers of the Imam’s Line” gathered outside the embassy.

One of the hostage-takers displays images of the hostages to international reporters

What appeared to be a routine protest suddenly escalated. At around 10:30 a.m., several students scaled the embassy walls, tore down the American flag, and forced their way through the gates. They overpowered the guards and began rounding up diplomats, military attachés, and staff. The takeover was surprisingly swift and frighteningly well-organised.

By the end of the day, 66 Americans were prisoners.

Six American diplomats initially evaded capture by hiding with their Canadian colleagues. Here, the “Canadian Six” celebrate after being smuggled out of Iran via a joint CIA-Canadian government covert operation

“You Are Our Guests”: The First Days of Captivity

When the hostages were first seized, the students announced that the occupation would be temporary — a few days at most, to demand the Shah’s return for trial. But when Ayatollah Khomeini publicly endorsed their actions, everything changed. The embassy seizure was suddenly elevated from a student protest to a revolutionary act.

One of the hostages later recalled, “They told us we were guests. Then they tied our hands, blindfolded us, and took us to the basement. That was when I realised this was no protest.”

Over the coming days, the compound became a fortress. Armed guards patrolled the halls, and television crews were invited to film the captives, blindfolded and bound, as proof of Iran’s defiance. Outside, thousands of Iranians rallied in support. They saw the embassy as the “Den of Spies” — the heart of decades of political manipulation.

Protesters burn an effigy of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, 1979

Life Inside the “Den of Spies”

The conditions inside the embassy varied from cramped to unbearable. Hostages were kept in small rooms, often handcuffed or bound for long periods. Food was basic — rice, bread, and tea — and medical care was minimal. The worst part, most recalled, was the uncertainty.

One hostage described being led into a room where guards cocked their weapons and counted down as if preparing to execute him — a mock execution designed purely to terrify. “It was the longest ten seconds of my life,” he said. “And it happened more than once.”

Despite the cruelty, some captors showed moments of humanity, offering cigarettes or small talk. Yet the psychological toll was immense. Forbidden from speaking to one another, deprived of light and information, the hostages had no idea if they’d ever go home.

Within weeks, 13 hostages were released — women, African Americans, and non-U.S. citizens. Khomeini justified their release by claiming they were already “oppressed” by the United States. Later, a fourteenth hostage with health issues was freed, leaving 52 Americans in captivity.

Aftermath of Operation Eagle Claw, the rescue attempt on April 24-25, 1980

The Canadian Caper: A Daring Escape

While the world watched the embassy siege, six other American diplomats had managed to slip out of the compound before it fell. They found refuge with Canadian diplomat John Sheardown and his wife, Zena, who sheltered them at great personal risk.

The Canadian ambassador, Ken Taylor, soon became the centre of a covert operation known as the “Canadian Caper.” Working with the CIA, the Canadians created fake identities for the six Americans as part of a film crew scouting locations for a fictional science-fiction movie titled Argo. Using counterfeit documents and Canadian passports, they walked through Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport on 27 January 1980 and boarded a flight to Zurich.

Taylor later said, “It was nerve-racking. They were sitting in the departure lounge while guards were questioning foreigners about their purpose. One wrong word and it could have been over.”

When news of the escape broke, Canada was celebrated internationally. The episode, later dramatised in the 2012 film Argo, remains one of the most successful examples of Cold War-era cooperation.

Operation Eagle Claw: The Failed Rescue

Back in Washington, frustration was growing. Diplomatic negotiations were going nowhere, and President Carter faced enormous pressure to act. In April 1980, he authorised a top-secret military rescue mission: Operation Eagle Claw.

The plan was ambitious. Elite Delta Force commandos would land at a remote desert site called “Desert One,” refuel, and then fly to Tehran to storm the embassy and free the hostages. But everything that could go wrong did.

A severe sandstorm grounded two helicopters before reaching the rendezvous point. Another malfunctioned en route. With fewer aircraft than required, the mission was already compromised, but the team decided to continue. Then tragedy struck. A helicopter collided with a C-130 transport plane during refuelling, causing an explosion that killed eight American servicemen.

The mission was aborted immediately. The charred remains of the aircraft, left behind in the desert, were paraded on Iranian television as a sign of divine favour for the revolution. For the United States, it was a national humiliation. Carter, visibly shaken, took full responsibility on television. The disaster dealt a fatal blow to his presidency.

Politics, Propaganda, and the 1980 Election

Throughout 1980, the crisis dominated American headlines. Night after night, television networks opened with footage of blindfolded hostages. The constant coverage became a grim ritual: “Day 200,” “Day 300,” “Day 400.” The crisis defined the final year of Jimmy Carter’s presidency.

Meanwhile, the Iranian leadership used the hostages as a political tool. Revolutionary students demanded the return of the Shah and billions in assets. The U.S. froze Iranian funds, further deepening hostilities.

During the 1980 presidential campaign, Ronald Reagan accused Carter of weakness and promised to restore America’s global authority. When Reagan won the election, rumours swirled that members of his campaign had secretly negotiated with Iran to delay the hostages’ release until after the vote — a claim never conclusively proven but widely debated.

Freedom at Last

On 20 January 1981, as Ronald Reagan took the oath of office, the world watched in disbelief as news broke that the hostages had finally been released. Minutes after Reagan’s inauguration, 52 Americans were freed. They boarded an Algerian aircraft and left Tehran after 444 days of captivity.

President Carter, who had worked tirelessly in his final days to secure the release, greeted them in Germany. Though the timing seemed symbolic, Iran insisted the release was the result of months of negotiations, not a political gesture.

For the hostages, homecoming was emotional and surreal. Many had spent more than a year in darkness and silence, emerging to a world they barely recognised. Several struggled for years with post-traumatic stress. One hostage later reflected, “You try to go back to normal life, but part of you stays in that basement forever.”

The Fallout

The Iran Hostage Crisis left deep scars on both nations. For the United States, it became a turning point — a moment of reckoning about its role abroad. It reinforced the idea that America’s global reach could be challenged and that diplomacy had limits in a revolutionary world.

In Iran, the crisis cemented Khomeini’s power. It rallied the country around his anti-Western message and isolated moderates who had once sought improved relations with the West. The episode helped shape Iran’s foreign policy for decades, promoting the image of defiance that still defines its stance towards Washington today.

The two countries severed diplomatic ties in 1980, and they have never been restored.