Iranians Mark 30th Anniversary Of U.S. Embassy Siege, Anti-Government Protesters Dispersed

November 4, 2009 3:47 p.m. EST

Tehran, Iran (AHN) - Thousands of Iranians held an anti-U.S. rally in central Tehran Wednesday to mark the 30th anniversary of the storming of the U.S. embassy as police dispersed anti-government protesters.

The demonstrators chanted "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" at the site of the former embassy. They also burned posters of Uncle Sam.

At the Haft-e-Tir square about a mile away, riot police clashed with thousands of opposition supporters chanting "Death to the dictator" and arrested dozens of protesters. The protesters moved to a different site whenever they were dispersed, according to witnesses.

The capture of the U.S. embassy by radical Islamic students in 1979 caused 52 American diplomats to be held hostage for 444 days. The event led to the severing of diplomatic ties between Tehran and Washington.