Customer Reviews

Takeover in Tehran: The Inside Story of the 1979 U.S. Embassy Capture

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I think it's important for readers to separate their own political beliefs when reading a book such as this one, because regardless of how you view the hostage takeover, this book presents what one side thought it was doing, a side we have not attempted to listen to and we can learn from. Ms. Ebtekar takes us inside the embassy compound in a fascinating account of the early days of this culminating moment in the revolution, and it's a view we as Americans need to at least check out. My own complaints with the book was that it seemed to lose some of the narrative thread as the description of the crisis wore on, and I would have also liked a bit more reflection on the part of the author given her current position in the Iranian government. Nevertheless, an important read for Americans and Iranians alike.

Many American readers will dismiss this book as purely propaganda, but I found it enlightening and at times entertaining. In attempting to explain the reasons behind the takeover, and the many unexpected results we learn a lesson about history and events' ability to have a snowball effect. Furthermore, there is little finger pointing and chest pounding that you'd usually find in such a memoir. People who take the time to read this book will learn about a time in our history that's often conjured up in media conversation, but is far from understood. This book, as its author sets out to do, begins that process of piecing together the many stories and perspectives of those 444 days.

"Takeover" is a timely book even today, a primary source memoir rather more revealing than many histories. Several reviewers did not read the book or read from such virulently antagonistic positions that they learned nothing from a rich resource.

The 444 days counted down by the nightly news leave images from one side and support a narrow and emotional tale about terrorists, fanatics, and threat. Far from reality or balance. The retelling of the takeover of the US Embassy in Tehran, the student's goals and activities, Khomeni's response, Press coverage and attitudes exemplifies something Americans have yet to come to terms with. The regular exposure of efforts at sabotage and CIA intervention were censored out of accounts we saw.(There is little or no account of the much older role of the US in Iran's finances and politics even before the First World War or even of the overthrow of Nationalist Mossadeq by CIA sabotage -- all of which provide a depth of experience and understanding of US motives and actions deeper than even today's typical understanding of Iran by Americans.) At a time when our extremists see nothing by an enemy in Iran we are likely to make similar miscalculations.

The biggest Power seems to have mostly sheltered, xenophobic, ill informed citizens because of both the media and our natural predisposition and distance. (As of 2004 we have new censorship that does not allow some books from specific 'enemy' countries to be published in the US - further corrupting our thinking and understanding.) "Takeover" is an easy and provocative read valuable for the personal story it tells and the much broader reflections about US policy, the CIA, the Media, and the near total "disconnect" from world realities from which we still suffer. It tells its story well and makes no pretense of being a broad and balanced history while injecting much that has been left out by American accounts.

As an American woman who spent many years in Tehran, leaving just shortly before the embassy takeover, I have been waiting for years for this book to be published. It is refreshing to read an intelligent explanation of the incident from those actually involved. Anyone who has had any interest in the whole Iranian situation over the last fifty years should make this book required reading.

As an Iranian who has lived in US and is familiar with Americam mentality on Iran I found this book fairly objective yet quite idealogical and to some extent successful in presenting for the first time the students and the Iranian view point. Probably one major reason why hostilities remain between the two countries is due to the failure of the US administration to grasp and diegest the aspirations of the majority of Iranians. The hostage taking event remains in the minds of American policy makers and due to consistant biased media reporting, American people as a major reason for frustration and agony.
This book serves fairly well in providing an insight into why it happened, the historical and political context, the psyche of its major players and the fascinating trend of events of this ordeal.
As the author points out this is an attempt to establish a dialogue between Iran and US by shedding light on one the dark pages of our common history .
This audacious account of the 444 day event which still effects international diplomacy today is surely worth reading at least once.

Under the Iranian Criminal Code( Article 62/11) the holding of hostages is a crime punishable by up to 15 years imprisonment and, if it leads to the death of the hostage, by capital punishment.
Thus the gang of fanatics who raided the US embassy compound in Tehran and held its diplomats hostage in 1979 must all be considered as criminals under the laws of their own country to start with. They may, of course, want to explain their action. But that can only be done in a proper court, in the framework of a proper trial and not in a cheap, shabbily written pamphlet as this one. Ms. Ebtekar's little pamphlet, full of hatred as it is for the United States and the American people, in no way diminishes from the gravity of the crime that she and her fellow gang members committed.
The problem in the Western democracies, notably the United States, is that one always finds individuals who try to
" understand", " explain" and, ultimately justify the most heinous of crimes. This is why serial killers on death row produce best-selling memoirs, ghost-written of course, and rapists are allowed to explain and justify their behaviour by reference to childhood grievances and other excuses.
Ms Ebtekar's " ghost" has performed a similar task: trying to explain the unexplainable, jusify the unjustifiable.
What would Ms Ebtekar say if someone held her hostage, blindfolded her and every day, for 444 days, threatened to kill her simply because of disagreements with this or that aspect of the policies of the mullahs who dominate Iran? Who gave Ms. Ebtekar the right to steal so much of the life of 53 decent, peaceful and humane individuals? Who will compensate for the lives shattered by Ms. Ebtekar's crime, and console the affected families?
What is truly astonishing is that Ms Ebtekar, now a middle-aged lady and an assistant to the mullah who acts as president in Tehran, continues to stick to the prejudices and misconceptions that led her to the crime of hostage-taking in her 20s. She shows that 22 years later she has learned nothing. Worse still she announces that she would, if need be, commit the same crime again.
...When Ms. Ebtekar and her associates committed their crime, the late Ruhallah Khomeini, their ultimate gang leader, announced his notorious phrase: " America Cannot Do A Damn Thing!" He was proved right. Nothing happened to the hostage-takers. In fact, they were rewardd by becoming ministers, amabassadors and vice-presidents in the government of the mullahs. Some like Ms. Ebtekar even became authors!
The political Mafia of which Khomeini was the godfather continued its criminal anti-American activities for the following two decades. In 1983 it organised suicide attacks in Beirut that led to the death of 258 American Marines, in their sleep, and almost 50 employees of the US embassy. That was followed by the seizure of 22 American citizens as hostages. Two, William Buckley and Bob Higgings were murdered in cold blood. Again, nothing happened to the criminals.
Is it a surprise that Osama Bin Laden's gang also believe that American Cannot Do A Damn Thing?
And hear this: one of Ms. Ebtekar's hostatge-taking associates, named Saeed Hajjarian, was shot and seriously injured last year in one of the occasional score-settling gun fights that take place within the Tehran politico-criminal Mafia. To save his life, Hajjarian was flown to the United States where he underwent surgery and treatment and was saved from certain death. This is the America that Ms. Ebtekar so passionately hates! A READER IN LONDON, ENGLAND

Interesting . . but just don't take it seriously. Ebtekar is nothing more than a criminal. The post below from the gentleman in London "CRIME PRESENTED AS POLITICAL ACTION" says everything that needs to be said.

As an Iranian young journalist who has not personally experienced the turbulent times of the Iran's Islamic Revolution of 1979, (the important and inseparable part of my country's history) Iran's hostage crisis has been mysterious to me and to my generation.

The book " Takeover in Tehran" provided an informative explanation to a part of my pile of questions.

Takeover in Tehran, as an account of an eyewitness who was an active participant in the event, has brought another and different approach to the actual event.

In addition, it seems that her narration presents a broader account on the reasons for takeover of the U.S. Embassy.

I think the book is successful to show the students' motives for occupying the Embassy and also reveal the inside story of the incident, although she could provided more details to reveal the backstage events.

The book could provide an outstanding overview of the conditions that led to collapse of the monarchy regime in Iran. The book's chronology of events leading to the takeover are accurate and reliable source for scholars and those interested.

In sum, I believe such a valuable book can pave the way to correct the biased media's perception of the takeover, also provide a ground for better understanding and dialogue between Iran and the West.

It's a story that needs to be told. Of course it's not 100% objective, but what is? To those who gave the book a low rank, they did not assess the content, rather are angry and heated because of human rights voilations and certain atrocious policies in the Islamic Republic.

It's an account of the hostage crisis, the FIRST account, and should be taken at face value.

While one might give a very low rating to the Islamic Republic's human rights record, Mrs. Ebtekar's book should be ranked on a different criteria. I give it five for it's value and importance in the academic realm.

Ebtekar definitely has an ax to grind since she was directly involved in the Embassy take-over. Nevertheless, it is always interesting to read an insider's view as long as one does not take it for the gospel.

What is highly interesting is that you get to see stuff they don't generally tell you about the take-over, such as how the students pieced back together the shredded documents. Unfortunately, Ebtekar does not take a step back to view the events in an historic context which is understandable since she is now a Big Cheese in the current administration and presumably does not want to upset the apple cart.