Four SAS men broke into the front of the Embassy after jumping over an adjoining balcony. They blew out the armoured windows with a ‘frame charge’ (A long strip of C4 explosives). An eight-strong rear team abseiled down from the roof. This almost ended in disaster when one of the SAS men became entangled in his abseiling rope. He later received burns after SAS stun and CS gas set the Embassy on fire.
As the frontal assault team was breaking through the front, the terrorist leader tried to open fire on them but was brought to the ground by hostage PC Trevor Lock. Trevor lock then attempted to arrest the terrorist but the SAS soldiers pushed Trevor Lock off and then shot the terrorist dead. As SAS soldiers swept through the building, another terrorist was shot 21 times as he pointed a Browning pistol at the SAS team. Sim Harris, one of the hostages, then made his escape through one of the windows that had been blasted open by the entry.
The escape of Sim Harris The SAS prepare for the siege.
helped by the SAS.
The fire caused by the CS and Stun gas.
In the Embassy’s telex room three terrorists started to shoot the male hostages when they heard gunfire and explosions. One hostage was killed and two others were wounded. As one of the terrorists drew a grenade, he was shot by the first SAS man to enter the room. Another terrorist was then shot. One tried to hide among the hostages, but as the latter were being bundled out of the building he was spotted with a grenade in his hands. An SAS soldier clubbed him to the floor with his Heckle and Koch MP5 and he was then shot 39 times. He was the fourth terrorist to die during the siege; the fifth was shot in the hallway near the front door. He was probably attempting to get outside where he was less likely to be shot in front of the news cameras.
The sixth and final terrorist Fowzi Badavi Nejad was more fortunate. He had been guarding the women hostages. The hostages were bound and unceremoniously passed along the chain of SAS men and into the embassy’s rear garden. Nejad had managed to conceal himself amongst them. In the garden Sim Harris pointed him out and the police carried him away. Nejad wisely offered no resistance and escaped with his life.
At 20:00 hours Lieutenant-Colonel Mike Rose, Commanding Officer, 22 SAS, handed back control of the embassy to Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police John Dellow, officially ending the SAS involvement. Two SAS soldiers involved with the siege were called as witnesses at the Coroner’s inquest into the five terrorists’ deaths, maybe implying that they used too much force. However the inquest jury returned a verdict of justifiable killing.
This whole event was being broadcasted live throughout the world as primetime TV. The storming of the Iranian embassy made the SAS a brand name for military excellence, but there were conflicting reports in the newspapers the next morning.
The left wing newspapers said that the SAS had ‘butchered’ the Iraqi terrorist. The SAS had used ‘excessive force’ in taking over the Embassy. Using twenty or thirty bullets to kill one man was the work of ‘uncontrollable monsters’. They also criticized Margaret Thatcher for not giving the terrorists what they wanted. The government should have used negotiators instead of sending in a ‘pack of wild beasts’.
Right wing papers such as the Telegraph saw the SAS as ‘saviours’ of the hostages. The real hero of the hour was PC Trevor Lock who stopped the leader of the terrorist shooting at SAS soldiers; he was awarded the George Cross. The right wing newspapers said that the use of excessive force was justified when the lives of innocent people were at risk. The SAS achieved their objectives: the fact that terrorists died was a by-product.
In my opinion the government was justified in the use of the SAS as the hostages were being killed and a quick solution was needed. If the government had not used force more hostages might have died. The demands could have been met but this would leave the door open for further terrorist demands. The SAS had to protect the innocent and they did it. Even though some of the terrorists could have been arrested there was no practical way of doing this without them still being a risk to the hostages and SAS members. 39 bullets is a lot to kill one man, but if fired from more than one soldier in the heat of battle 39 isn’t that many. Terrorists are dangerous; they have a single aim and their target has to be met without regard to life or property.
Terrorists lose their right to a fair trial when they use innocent people in an attempt to get their demands meet. I believe the actions of the SAS and the fact that they are still active and operational allows people like us to sleep soundly.
Bradley
Winchle
