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Article: America held hostage: in 1979, Islamic fundamentalists seized the U.S. Embassy in Iran, holding 52 Americans for 444 days--until a change in presidents. (times past).
- Article from:
- New York Times Upfront
- Article date:
- January 10, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Scholastic, Inc. 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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Marine Sergeant William Quarles had a bad feeling on the rainy morning of November 4, 1979. He was watching as thousands of Iranian college students swarmed around the U.S. Embassy's 27-acre compound in Iran's capital, Tehran (map, page 18). Quarles and other lightly armed marines provided security there, but they couldn't cope with an invasion.
The number of students shouting "Death to America!" kept growing. Even so, Quarles and other Americans felt sure this was just another anti-U.S. demonstration that would soon die out. "I can't believe this," he told fellow marines. "I don't believe these little knuckleheads think they're going to take over the embassy."