Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
On 6 June 1980, a former SAS Commander gave an interview with ITN’s Peter Sissons anonymously, to discuss the Iranian Embassy siege that took place in London. On 30 April, six gunmen stormed the Iranian Embassy located in South Kensington. Campaigning for the sovereignty of the Khuzestan Province of Iran, the armed men took twenty-six people hostage demanding for the release of prisoners in Khuzestan and their own safe passage out of Britain. A six-day siege began after the British government refused to their demands. The police managed for the release of five hostages, however by the sixth day the gunmen grew frustrated and killed a hostage. The British Special Air Service then intervened and initiated ‘Operation Nimrod’, a seventeen-minute raid where all but one of the hostages were saved and the SAS terminated five out of six of the gunmen. Operation Nimrod brought the SAS to the public eye; they became overwhelmed by application numbers of people wanting to join and foreign governments asking for their expertise.
#itnarchive #1980s #iran #britishhistory #militaryhistory #siege #ukhistory #specialforces #specialops
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On 6 June 1980, a former SAS Commander gave an interview with ITN’s Peter Sissons anonymously, to discuss the Iranian Embassy siege that took place in London. On 30 April, six gunmen stormed the Iranian Embassy located in South Kensington. Campaigning for the sovereignty of the Khuzestan Province of Iran, the armed men took twenty-six people hostage demanding for the release of prisoners in Khuzestan and their own safe passage out of Britain. A six-day siege began after the British government refused to their demands. The police managed for the release of five hostages, however by the sixth day the gunmen grew frustrated and killed a hostage. The British Special Air Service then intervened and initiated ‘Operation Nimrod’, a seventeen-minute raid where all but one of the hostages were saved and the SAS terminated five out of six of the gunmen. Operation Nimrod brought the SAS to the public eye; they became overwhelmed by application numbers of people wanting to join and foreign governments asking for their expertise.
#itnarchive #1980s #iran #britishhistory #militaryhistory #siege #ukhistory #specialforces #specialops
To license the footage featured in this clip, follow the link below:
gettyimages.co.uk/search/2/film?phrase=AS060580003*&collections=itn&sort=newest
_______
To search the ITN Archive collection on Getty Images, follow the link below:
gettyimages.co.uk/footage/itn
🎥 Subscribe to our YouTube channel (tap the bell icon and stay up to date with all the latest ITN Archive videos!) - youtube.com/@FrontlinebyITN
🎥 Follow us on Twitter - twitter.com/ITNArchive
🎥 Like us on Facebook - facebook.com/ITNArchiveITNP
🎥 Check out our TikTok - tiktok.com/@itnarchive1955
