On Nov. 4, 1979, a group of Iranian university students and militants took over the US Embassy in Tehran. Fifty-two American members of the embassy staff were held hostage for more than a year in Tehran in an incident that has become known as the Iranian hostage crisis.
Negotiation attempts repeatedly failed, as did a rescue mission. The hostages were finally released in January 1981 through an Iranian agreement with the US.
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Iran attack on UK embassy: 5 high profile embassy breaches
The best-known example of what happens when hostility reaches a breaking point is the Iranian hostage crisis of 1979, but numerous embassies have been stormed since then.
5. Iranian hostage crisis (1979-1981)
