Iranians mark 40th anniversary of US embassy siege

Iranians on Monday staged rallies to mark the 40th anniversary of the 1979 siege on the former US embassy in Tehran when angry students occupied the Mission's compound and held 52 American diplomats hostage for 444 days.

The embassy was taken over by hundreds of students on November 4, 1979, nearly nine months after the Islamic Revolution dethroned the Pahlavi regime, reports Press TV.

The students detained 66 embassy staff. But they released women, African-Americans and as well as a man who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis days later but kept the remaining 52 detainees for 444 days.

In Tehran, students joined a large gathering staged outside the former embassy building from early Monday morning.

The demonstrators chanted slogans against the US and Israel and set their flags on fire in condemnation of their policies.

Iranian Army Commander Brigadier General Abdul-Rahim Mousavi is scheduled to deliver a speech later in the day.

On Saturday, new murals were unveiled on the walls of the former embassy, which signified key aspects of the Islamic Revolution and Iran's resistance against the US.

The murals included a painting of the Iran Air Flight 655 that was shot down by the USS Vincennes on July 3, 1988 as it was flying over the Persian Gulf with 290 people aboard who were all killed.