Hostage to Khomeini Robert Dreyfuss
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That theory puts the cart before the horse. The Ayatollah Khomeini, who had privately sanctioned the actions of the hostage takers, refused to see U.S emissaries and rebuffed U.S. But as hostages, they would become pawns in an internal power struggle within Iran, a handy political device for Khomeini as he sought “hate-figures” to unite the country behind him. The Ayatollah Khomeini made no comment on the occupation for several days, waiting first to gauge American reaction to the hostage taking, which he feared might spur military action. Khomeini orders the release of the remaining US hostages. Embassy in Tehran and hold 52 Americans hostage. The release of the hostages came when the Khomeini government freed the hostages because they did not see anymore gain out of holding the Americans hostage. 4, 1980, he found his efforts to resolve the hostage crisis thwarted. The students initially intended to hold the hostages for only a short time, but changed their plans when their act garnered widespread praise in Iran. This is not another 'October Surprise' theory purporting how the hostage crisis resulted in some Khomeini-Republic better deal. Invasion of US Embassy in Iran, image from cia.gov. Iran finances and founds “Hezbollah” in Lebanon. The Hostage Crisis and Operation Eagle Claw. By Intelligence Operative Jay Holmes*. As we have seen, for Ayatollah Khomeini the hostage crisis offered a tantalizing opportunity to outflank his domestic political rivals, particularly the moderates. November 4, 1979 – Radical Iranian students take over the U.S. On November 4, 1979, a group of students, all of whom were ardent followers of Imam Khomeini, seized the United States embassy in Tehran, and took 63 American citizens as hostage.