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Article: Calamity at desert one: on April 25, 1980, eight American servicemen died in the first modern U.S. hostile confrontation with militant Islam. The failed rescue of 53 American hostages held by the Khomeini regime in Iran had far-reaching repercussions.(failed 1980 attempt to free hostages)
- Article from:
- VFW Magazine
- Article date:
- November 1, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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There is a hushed field of shattered dreams located in a desolate wasteland where American fighting men died without ever engaging the enemy. The place has no crosses, no memorial, yet it marks the site of the opening skirmish of this country's battles against state-sponsored Islamic terrorism.
At 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 4, 1979, inflamed by the admission of the deposed shah of Iran to the U.S., a mob of some 3,000 armed "students" stormed the U.S. Embassy compound in Tehran and took the occupants hostage.
The planning for Operation Eagle Claw--the mission to free the hostages--began the day the embassy was seized. A core strategy team met at the Joint ...