Iran - US Hostage Crisis 1979
In November 1979 Islamic militants took 52 Americans hostage inside the US embassy in Tehran. They demanded the extradition of the Shah, in the US at the time for medical treatment, to face trial in Iran.
The crisis reached a climax when the US military attempted a rescue operation on April 24th 1980. The failure of the mission resulted in the deaths of five US Air Force Airmen and three US marines.
