Iran marks the seizure of ex-US embassy in Tehran (1979)
On November 4, 1979, between 300 and 400 Islamist students stormed the embassy compound by climbing over the walls, and seized the embassy.
After a brief resistance by several US Marine guards the students took 52 US staff members hostage and held them for a total of 444 days, leading to the end of diplomatic ties between the two countries in 1980.