Pre-Teheran

Submitted by Phil Bramley (United States), Sep 18, 2002 at 20:56

Daniel, i would suggest that it started prior to the storming of the US Embassy in Teheran, it started when Islamic militants stormed the US Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan, months earlier.

I first heard the term "Death to America" from two busloads of demonstrators outside the Australian Embassy prior to them moving off to attack the US Embassy a short distance away. Not long after automatic weapons fire was heard in the vicinity of the US Embassy and smoke began to rise from the Chancery compound.

The pretext for the storming of the US Embassy was a radio broadcast that claimed that the US had bombed parts of Mecca and the holy sites.

Eventually, when the Embassy staff had fought their way to the rooftop they were finally rescued by Pakistani air force helicopters and transported to the safety of the British High Commission.

This incident, where American lives were lost, in my opinion, marks the beginning of the war of terrorism against the U.S.

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