Incredible never-before-seen pics show Iranian Embassy hostages running through smoke 40 years after siege
INCREDIBLE never-before-seen pictures show hostages running through smoke at the Iranian Embassy 40 years after the siege.
On April 30, 1980, six armed terrorists stormed the embassy building at Princes Gate, West London and held 26 people captive for six days.
The new images released today show brave SAS soldiers abseiling from the roof and entering through the windows on May 5.
Smoke can be seen billowing out of the embassy after the soldiers dropped an explosive through the skylight to cover their entrance and cause confusion among the terrorists.
Hostages can also be seen lying on the grass in a garden nearby after escaping the building.
During the 17-minute raid, known as Operation Nimrod, the elite British fighters rescued all but one of the remaining hostages and killed five of the six terrorists.
RESCUE RAID
The ruthless terrorists were from the group the Democratic Revolutionary Front for Arabistan who opposed the Iranian regime led by Ayatollah Khomeini who had seized power in the 1979 revolution.
They demanded the release of 91 political prisoners in Iran and also wanted a plane to escape the UK with the hostages.
Before the rescue mission, several female hostages were released along with one male BBC journalist who had feigned stomach cramps.
However, the six-day siege came to an end when the terrorists executed one of the hostages named Abbas Lavasani.
The start of the raid was actually rushed when one abseiling SAS fighter accidentally put his boot through a window.
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All but one of the terrorists was shot dead when the elite soldiers stormed the building.
And when the hostages were then taken outside and counted, it emerged that a terrorist was hiding among them.
But BBC sound man Sim Harris, who had escaped from the balcony during the raid, identified the man and he was arrested.
