On April 30, 1980 six gunmen seized the Iranian Embassy in London, taking 21 hostages, two of whom they killed. He names the 4 on the front balcony as Mel Parry, John McAleese (already on this site), Thomas (Tommo) MacDonald and Trooper "Deggs". My only job at this point was to get on to the balcony, place the charge, get back, blow it, turn around and go back in through the window." Nineteen hostages were rescued, and three gunmen shot dead. I fired two bursts into his centre of mass at point-blank range. I’m trying to ignore Firmin’s sad drivel about me.’. The SAS Regiment’s service thereafter also became increasingly sought after by foreign governments. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? in which civilian SAS wannabes from all walks of life had a go at the regiment's tough training and selection process. Needless to say, British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, was not for negotiating with terrorists and the white-fronted five-storey embassy building became the scene of a tense stand-off for several days, surrounded by armed police. Oan, who had apparently shot Lavasani, said a hostage would be killed every half an hour if their demands were not met. That’s what you are. But ahead of Tuesday’s 40th anniversary of the assault, which made the elite regiment a household name, rarely seen images of a different part of the daring mission have emerged – and nor was that without its own intense drama. He also worked as a security consultant in Iraq and Afghanistan and as an instructor in Airsoft, an outdoor war game using realistic weapons but non-lethal ammunition. A very rare glimpse at the remembrance book at St. Martin's Chuch in Hereford. As he jumped on to a balcony of the embassy itself, his all-black outfit stood out dramatically against the white of the building. In part 8 of the TV programme BBC Iranian Embassy Siege Documentary (you can see it on youtube) They joined forces in 1980 as members of the masked, black-clad SAS squad that stormed London’s Iranian Embassy in a jaw-dropping display of British courage. ‘You’re not Mr SAS as you portray. Who dares shares!’. Thatcher immediately gave her Home Secretary, Willie Whitelaw, the green light to send in the SAS. Share. Two years ago this month, his eldest son, 29-year-old Sergeant Paul McAleese of 2 Battalion The Rifles, who had also hoped to join the SAS, was killed by a roadside bomb in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. After Paul was repatriated via Wootton Bassett, "Big Mac", as he was always known, accused then Prime Minister Gordon Brown of not providing enough troops or resources in Afghanistan. The SAS Regiment’s reputation increased dramatically after the action during the Iranian Embassy Siege and the Regiment received an enormous amount of applications by people who were impressed by the action with the codename Operation Nimrod. Iranian Embassy siege: Margaret Thatcher and Willie Whitelaw, left, the daring SAS raid, right (Image: Getty) They took mostly embassy staff hostage but among them was BBC sound recordist Sim Harris who was at the embassy to get a visa. The Iranian Embassy Siege Begins. The gunmen released five hostages in return for minor concessions, but any hope of a peaceful outcome ended at 7pm on 5 May when they shoved the body of the Iranian press attaché Abbas Lavasani out of the front door. They kill people. Bob Curry, one of first commandos to break into building where 26 hostages were held, puts war medals up for auction along with SAS memorabilia ‘I’ve never responded because I pitied him. Meanwhile, McAleese and his on-call unit from Pagoda Troop, B Squadron, 22 SAS Regiment set up headquarters at an army barracks in Regent's Park and prepared what they codenamed Operation Nimrod – a contingency plan for an assault on the embassy. He fell to the bottom of the stairs like a sack of potatoes and lay there as two more members of the team fired into him to make sure.’, The acrimonious dispute also centres on the claim by both soldiers to have shot the same Arab terrorist during the siege. They’re both easily narked and age hasn’t mellowed them when it comes to their feelings towards each other.’. After a tense siege, the crisis was resolved when the building was stormed by the Special Air Service in … In a 2008 documentary on Channel Five, McAleese said: "We knew what those guys were like. Want an ad-free experience?Subscribe to Independent Premium. On the 30th April 1980, six armed men entered the Iranian embassy in London. Copy link. Members of the Special Air Service (SAS) enter the Iranian Embassy May 5, 1980, to end a six day siege in Central London. Its inhabitants were taken hostage – staff and guests who included the ambassador, British journalists and PC Trevor Lock, the policeman guarding the embassy. SAS Blue Team - back door Assault Team Leader, Iranian Embassy Siege, SAS B Squadron, HQ Squadron 23 SAS permanent staff instructor, 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery, security consultant, close protection operative, security manager and advisor, author, speaker and consultant. Fame, if not fortune, followed. They're baddies. Firmin said: ‘[Horsfall] was a reserve team member during the siege and came in the rear entrance AFTER the assault. For a time, he also ran a pub in Herefordshire. But essentially they were attacking the year-old Islamic regime of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and were reported to have had the backing of Khomeini's arch-enemy, the Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Six members of a separatist group from the oil-rich Iranian province of Khuzestan – which they called Arabistan – had taken over their country's embassy at 16 Princes Gate, South Kensington, at 11.30am on 30 April. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. Some of them took over the Royal School of Needlework, on the same block, to use it as a model since its layout was identical to that of the embassy. At 7.23pm, eight men from Red Team, all in black overalls, black balaclavas and gas masks, began abseiling from the embassy roof down to its back windows. He moved to Greece to get away from the memories and got a job as a security guard in Thessaloniki, where he died of an apparent heart attack, aged 61. (Photo by PA Images via Getty Images) The SAS developed a plan of action to free the hostages. The dramatic six-day siege ended when elite British SAS … Firmin, now 70, is known in SAS circles as ‘No Gloves’ as he forgot to wear those issued for the operation. Whatever the SAS was doing operationally in the 1970s, it was doing so without making much fuss. He had gone to help a comrade after an earlier bomb. According to SAS insiders, the spat between the veterans is spoiling preparations for the 40th anniversary of the embassy siege, due to be marked in the regiment’s home city of Hereford in early May. Last night, Mr Firmin said: ‘I was the team leader, I know who was where. Interactive tool reveals how small the outbreak is in your... Boris Johnson's Conservatives open up a 14-point poll lead off the back of the vaccine roll-out as Keir... Has Boris Johnson shown Covid passports the red card? Team member for the BBC Television series SAS Survival Secrets Peter McAleese - … Without hesitation, I fired one short burst of three rounds at his chest. John Thomas "Mac" McAleese, MM (25 April 1949 – 26 August 2011) was a Scottish soldier who took part in several late 20th century conflicts with the British Army's Royal Engineers and the Special Air Service Regiment, including the storming of the Iranian Embassy in London during a hostage taking siege incident in May 1980. They demanded the release of prisoners held by the Iranian government. McAleese said that his son had told him that British forces needed more men to deal with explosive devices. McAleese and his men were ready – Red Team on the roof, and Blue Team, including himself, in an adjoining building, No 15, home of the Royal College of General Practitioners. It was Faisal and he held a grenade in his right hand. On April 30th, 1980, six armed men from the terrorist group KSA, led by Oan Ali Mohammed, stormed the Iranian embassy and took 26 staff and visitors hostage. Reporter, SAS: Embassy Siege. They were on our home soil and it was like they were the invaders. The nation watched mesmerised as Rusty Firmin and Robin Horsfall, alongside their fearless Special Forces colleagues, set off explosives, burst through windows and shot dead hostage-holding terrorists in a hail of sub-machinegun bullets. Rusty Firmin – wearing no gloves – is seen with SAS colleagues during the fabled 1980 Iranian embassy assault, in a jaw-dropping display of British courage, In a furious and widely shared online post, Firmin (left) suggested the fighting was finished when his Special Forces colleague Robin Horsfall (right) entered the embassy and that his role was to ‘evacuate hostages’ rather than take on the heavily armed and deadly terrorists. According to Paul's sister – John McAleese's elder daughter, Hayley – the former SAS man never got over his son's death. As one said last night: ‘This is getting very, very bitter. By Peter Taylor. He was discharged from the army on 8 February 1992. The reserve team, including Horsfall, had not been sent in when I shot Faisal.’ But Mr Horsfall said: ‘The forensic reports prove I also shot Faisal. Describing his feud with Horsfall, Firmin adds: ‘He has been the aggressor, spouting nonsense about the film Six Days and making pathetic YouTube videos. In his book, Firmin says that he killed ‘Faisal’, the second-in-command of the six-man terrorist group on the embassy stairs, and that moments later two other SAS men fired into his corpse ‘to make sure’ he was dead, But in his book, Horsfall says: ‘A terrorist stumbled around the corner of the stairwell and down the last few steps. Iranian Embassy siege. The Iranian embassy siege: The day the SAS emerged from the shadows The siege began when a group of six gunmen stormed into the Iranian embassy in South Kensington, London, on April 30th 1980. Mother who feeds her family-of-five on £20 a week reveals her money-saving tips including freezing cheese... Facebook censors DailyMail.com story on BLM co-founder's multi-million dollar LA property empire. The terrifying operation, seen by a spellbound audience of millions on live television on a May Bank Holiday evening, made the SAS what they remain today – the world’s most celebrated military unit. Ostensibly, the gunmen were demanding independence for Khuzestan and the release of around 90 of their provincial countrymen from jail. Published: 23:32 BST, 29 February 2020 | Updated: 23:50 BST, 29 February 2020. King's article continues: "On May 6, 1980, the SAS famously ended a hostage crisis in the Iranian Embassy to a world television audience. Unlike some of his SAS comrades, including the authors with the noms de plume Andy McNab and Chris Ryan, McAleese was anything but shy about using his real name. John McAleese - First man on the balcony during the Iranian Embassy siege in 1980 caught on live news. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. The troops from the SAS’s B Squadron went in after the terrorists dumped the dead body of one hostage outside the embassy. He signed up for 59 Independent Commando, Royal Engineers, when he was 20, serving for five years before being accepted by the SAS and moving to Hereford in 1975. The explosion was also the signal for the abseil team at the back to storm in shooting. John McAleese was born in Stirling in 1949 and brought up in Laurieston, outside Falkirk. SAS comrades who took part in 1980 Iranian embassy siege engage in furious spat | Daily Mail Online Who Dares Whines: Furious 'Walter Mitty' spat … Watch later. Millions watched the drama unfold on TV – with those on the BBC having coverage of the final of the world snooker championships interrupted. This characteristic played a vital role in the impact of the SAS and its style during the Iranian Embassy siege. Does Putin really need another army? Rusty Firmin (SAS) Interview - The Iranian Siege. Armed with submachine guns, Browning 9mm pistols and Russian-made hand grenades, they initially held 26 hostages, including police constable Trevor Lock, who had been on duty outside the embassy, and two BBC employees, who had been applying for visas for Iran. SAS veteran Corporal Robin Horsfall on the preparation, planning and storming of the Iranian Embassy in 1980. A soldier inches from him also opened fire. Yesterday Rusty Firmin, who was a lance corporal leading the SAS Blue Team which charged the rear of the embassy, said Nejad can be seen in … But now, just weeks before the 40th anniversary of that era-defining mission, a bitter dispute between Firmin and Horsfall has shocked the SAS community. Firmin and Horsfall published memoirs recalling their heroics amid the clouds of CS gas, while celebrated actor Jamie Bell played Firmin in the 2015 feature film Six Days which retold the story of the famous siege. Shopping. Tap to unmute. That was it. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. The only Robin that seen [sic] genuine action that day was the one nesting under the balcony of the embassy. The terrorists, who called themselves the 'Democratic Revolutionary Front for Arabistan' were protesting against the oppression o… As moves begin to honour one of the Scots involved, Sandra Dick reflects on 40 years since SAS troops ended the Iranian Embassy siege. The terrorists were members of the Democratic Revolutionary Front for the Liberation of Arabistan, a group fighting for independence from Iran for their home region. The Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic standoff between the United States and Iran. {{#verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}} {{^verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}}, John McAleese: Leader of the SAS team that ended the 1980 siege of the, Booking.com promo: 10% extra with Level 1 Genius membership, Use this Debenhams discount and save up to 70% on men's lines - Spring offer, Exclusive Ideal World promo code: 20% saving on fitness, Receive a £2 AliExpress promo code with the official App, Argos promo: Up to 50% off in the Tu Kid clothing sale. The dramatic assault, broadcast live on TV in what became iconic images, turned the SAS overnight from a shadowy, secretive regiment to one with national and international hero status. Their leader, known as Oan, immediately announced that if their demands were not met by noon the following day, 1 May, "the embassy and all the hostages will be blown up." "He was a very hard man but losing Paul broke his heart," she said. Iranian Embassy Siege: ‘Hero’ hostage negotiator in tense standoff dies aged 84 SCOTLAND Yard's chief hostage negotiator in the Iranian Embassy siege of 1980 has died. Rusty Firmin (SAS) Interview - The Iranian Siege - YouTube. Amongst the hostages are men from the BBC who were arranging visas. The three SAS men: Tom, Robin Horsfall and Mac. Tense and protracted negotiations f… Names include, Labalaba who died at the Battle of Mirbat, and Tommy Tobin who later died of wounds from the Battle of Mirbat. "He had a broken heart and ultimately it was his heart that took him.". Pictures of SAS soldiers abseiling down the walls of the Iranian Embassy moments before they rescued hostages inside have become synonymous with the regiment. The SAS unmasked. [12], At approximately 11:30 on Wednesday, 30 April the six heavily armed members of DRFLA stormed the Iranian Embassy building on Princes Gate, South Kensington. 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