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The Role of Algeria in the Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981

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The Role of Algeria in the Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981 People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research Larbi Ben M’hidi University-Oum El Bouaghi Faculty of Letters and Languages Department of English The Role of Algeria in the Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979-1981 A Mémoire Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Anglo-American Studies By: Berhail Wafa Board of Examiners: Dr. Maameri Fatima, Supervisor Mr. Dalichaouech Abderahmane, member 2016-2017 Abstract The role of Algeria in the Iran Hostage Crisis is rarely tackled by researchers, thus the importance of this research lies in its highlighting of such a role. Although Algeria played an important role in solving the diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States, its role has been neglected by the latter. It entered as a mediator between Iran and the United States at a time when the two parties refused to sit at the negotiating table. Despite this important intervention, there is no evidence that the United States political scene showed any gratitude, especially the Reagan administration. The Hollywood movie Argo (2012) is told from an American-based point of view, thus it ignores the Algerian role in the Iran Hostage Crisis. Our descriptive and analytical study has come to the conclusion that the successful Algerian role in the Iran Hostage Crisis has been neglected by the United States because of the latter’s promotion of American exceptionalism. Keywords: Iran Hostage Crisis, Algerian role, American exceptionalism Résumé Le rôle de l’Algérie dans la crise des otages Américains en Iran est rarement abordé par les chercheurs, donc l’importance de cette recherche repose dans l’insistance sur ce rôle. Bien que l’Algérie ait joué un rôle important pour la résolution de la crise diplomatique entre l’Iran et les Etats-Unis, son rôle était négligé par les Etats-Unis. L’Algérie a entré comme un médiateur entre l’Iran et les Etats-Unis à une période quand les deux parties ont refusés d’asseoir à la table de négociations. Malgré cette importante intervention, il n y’a aucune évidence que la scène politique des Etats-Unis a montré n’importe quel gratitude; notamment l’administration de Reagan. Argo (2012) est raconté d’un point de vu Américain, dont il ignore le rôle de l’Algérie dans la crise des otages Américains en Iran. Notre étude descriptive et analytique est venue de la conclusion que le rôle de l’Algérie dans la crise des otages Américains en Iran a été négligé par les Etats-Unis à cause de l’encouragement d’exceptionnalisme Américain par ce dernier. Mots clés: La crise des otages Américains en Iran, rôle Algérien, exceptionnalisme Américain ملخص إن دور الجزائر في أزمة الرهائن اﻷمريكيين في إيران نادرا ما يعالج من طرف الباحثين، مما يجعل أهمية هذا البحث تكمن في تسليطه الضوء على هذا الدور. بالرغم من أن الجزائر لعبت دورا هاما في حل اﻷزمة الدبلوماسية بين إيران و الوﻻيات المتحدة، هذا الدور متجاهل من قبل اﻷمريكيين. لقد دخلت الجزائر كوسيط بين إيران و الوﻻيات المتحدة في وقت كان فيه الطرفان يرفضان الجلوس على طاولة المفاوضات. و لكن بالرغم من هذا التدخل المهم، ﻻ يوجد أي دليل يثبت أن الوسط السياسي اﻷمريكي قد أظهر أي امتنان خاصة عهدة ريغان. في ما يخص فيلم هوليوود آرغو )2012(، بما انه قد حكي من وجهة نظر أمريكية إذا فهو يتجاهل الدور الجزائري في أزمة الرهائن اﻷمريكيين في إيران. إذن، دراستنا الوصفية و التحليلية وصلت إلى أن دور الجزائر في أزمة الرهائن اﻷمريكيين في إيران متجاهل من قبل الوﻻيات المتحدة بسبب الترويج لﻻستثنائية اﻷمريكية من قبل هذه اﻷخيرة. الكلمات المفتاحية: أزمة الرهائن اﻷمريكيين في إيران، الدور الجزائري، اﻻستثنائية اﻷمريكية ii Dedication To the Memory of Mohamed Seddik Benyahia who sacrified his life to spread peace To my parents and my brother iii Acknowledgements First, I would like to thank my supervisor Dr. Maameri Fatima for her guidance as well as for correcting my drafts. Also, words cannot express my gratitude to my parents who inspired me to find the topic of this Mémoire. I thank the following people whose emotional support accompanied me through the conduct of this Mémoire: my grandfather Berhail Belaid, my grandmother Naoun Bahria, my brother Berhail Fethi, my cousin Mehtali Khawla and Bougoufa Said who holds the position of a father in my heart. Finally, I thank my family and my following friends: Zerara Zina, Yousfi Chaima, Chaoui Maroua Yakouta and Lamraoui Meriem Sara with whom I share the best memories throughout my university years. iv List of acronyms AIOS: Anglo-Iranian Oil Company CIA: Central Intelligence Agency NFL: National Liberation Front JCS: Joint Chiefs of Staff PLO: Palestine Liberation Organization SAVAK: Sāzemān-e Ettelā'āt va Amniyat-e Keshvar ( Iranian Organization of Intelligence and National Security) SIS: Secret Intelligence Service UNCHR: United Nations Commission on Human Rights v List of illustrations Figure1: The Arrival of the American Hostages to Algiers……..………………….28 Figure2: Warren Christopher and Mohamed Seddik Benyahia…………………….30 vi Table of Contents Abstract Dedication…………………………………………………………………………. ii Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………….. iii List of acronyms…………………………………………………………………... iv List of illustrations………………………………………………………………….v Table of contents…………………………………………………………………...vi Introduction………………………………………………………………………...1 Chapter I: Iran-United States Relations during the Carter Administration I. The United States Relations with Mohammed Reza Pahlavi: A Background……7 II. The Iranian Revolution, 1979……………………………………………………9 III. The Iran Hostage Crisis………………………………………………………...12 IV. Operation Eagle Claw and its Consequences…………………………………..15 Chapter II: Algeria-United States Relations: The Role of Algeria in the Iran Hostage Crisis I. Algerian-American Relations after 1962: An Overview…………………………20 II. The Diplomatic Strategies of Algeria in the Iran Hostage Crisis………………...23 III. The End of the Crisis……………………………………………………………27 IV. The Impact of the Algerian Mediation on the Algerian-American Relations…..30 Chapter III: Argo (2012): A Critical Analysis I. The Representation of Historical Events by Hollywood…………………………34 II. Argo: The Plot…………………………………………………………………..37 vii III. Argo: An Overview of Film Criticisms…………………………………….......40 IV. Argo: Film Analysis…………………………………………………………....43 General Conclusion…………………………………………………………….....48 Endnotes…………………………………………………………………………..50 List of Works Cited……………………………………………………………….53 1 Introduction The Iran Hostage Crisis was a diplomatic crisis that occurred between Iran and the United States during which a number of Americans were hold hostages by a group of Iranian students. The diplomatic relations between the two countries started to break down after the Iranian Revolution in 1979 that led to the overthrow of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. The latter took refuge in the United States which declined to return him back to Iran; more, it refused to recognize the new government which resulted from the Iranian Revolution. Consequently, a group of Iranian students took over the United States embassy in Tehran. By doing so, fifty- two American diplomats were held hostages for 444 days under the supervision of the new Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeini. Many attempts were made by the United States president Jimmy Carter in order to free the hostages; however, all of those attempts failed until Algeria acted as a mediator between the two countries. The negotiations continued until 19 January 1981 when the hostages were released under the terms of the Algiers Accords. In 2012, a Hollywood movie named Argo was produced. Claiming to be based on a true event, the Iran Hostage Crisis, the movie tells the story of six Americans who escaped during the seizing of the American embassy in Tehran. It has caused controversy among scholars and film critics who claim that the movie lacks historical accuracy. Throughout the movie, it is noticeable that the Algerian role, which is going to be tackled in this research, is neglected by its producer Ben Affleck. 2 The importance of this topic lies in its focus on the Algerian role as a mediator between the United States and Iran. It presents the Iran Hostage Crisis from a perspective that is rarely tackled by scholars and researchers. Hence, it introduces the readers to the importance of the Algerian role in freeing the American hostages held in Iran. Also, it introduces the readers to Mohammed Seddik Beniahya’s efforts to ensure the success of negotiations between Iran and the United States. The main focus of this Mémoire is the neglection of the Algerian role by the United States. Algeria interfered between the two parties at a critical time, when negotiations between them reached a complex point. Such mediation resulted in the release of the hostages held for almost 14 months. Hence, although Algeria played an important role in solving the diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States, its role has been underlooked by United States politicians and filmmakers. Through the use of relevant sources, this research’s main aim is to shed light on the Algerian efforts that were made in order to solve the Iran Hostage Crisis. Because of the complexity of the situation between Iran and the United States, certain diplomatic efforts were required in order to set negotiations between the two parties. Those efforts were mainly made by Mohammed Seddik Benyahia, Algeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, who presented a great example of a developed Algerian diplomacy. Thus, this research’s second aim is to stimulate researchers to produce more writings about Algerian diplomacy and political figures. Considering the fact that filmmaking
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