1991 : Hostage Terry Anderson freed in Lebanon
On this day in 1991, Islamic militants in Lebanon release kidnapped
American journalist Terry Anderson after 2,454 days in captivity.
As chief Middle East correspondent for the Associated Press, Anderson
covered the long-running civil war in Lebanon (1975-1990). On March
16, 1985, he was kidnapped on a west Beirut street while leaving a
tennis court. His captors took him to the southern suburbs of the
city, where he was held prisoner in an underground dungeon for the
next six-and-a-half years.
Anderson was one of 92 foreigners (including 17 Americans) abducted
during Lebanon's bitter civil war. The kidnappings were linked to
Hezbollah, or the Party of God, a militant Shiite Muslim organization
formed in 1982 in reaction to Israel's military presence in Lebanon.
They seized several Americans, including Anderson, soon after Kuwaiti
courts jailed 17 Shiites found guilty of bombing the American and
French embassies there in 1983. Hezbollah in Lebanon received
financial and spiritual support from Iran, where prominent leaders
praised the bombers and kidnappers for performing their duty to Islam.
U.S. relations with Iran--and with Syria, the other major foreign
influence in Lebanon--showed signs of improving by 1990, when the
civil war drew to a close, aided by Syria's intervention on behalf of
the Lebanese army. Eager to win favor from the U.S. in order to
promote its own economic goals, Iran used its influence in Lebanon to
engineer the release of nearly all the hostages over the course of
1991.
Anderson returned to the U.S. and was reunited with his family,
including his daughter Suleme, born three months after his capture. In
1999, he sued the Iranian government for $100 million, accusing it of
sponsoring his kidnappers; he received a multi-million dollar
settlement.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1991 : Hostage Terry Anderson freed in Lebanon
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=5574
1872 : The mystery of the Mary Celeste
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5572
1918 : President Wilson travels to Europe
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5573
1992 : Bush orders U.S. troops to Somalia
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=7101
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On this day in 1991, Islamic militants in Lebanon release kidnapped
American journalist Terry Anderson after 2,454 days in captivity.
As chief Middle East correspondent for the Associated Press, Anderson
covered the long-running civil war in Lebanon (1975-1990). On March
16, 1985, he was kidnapped on a west Beirut street while leaving a
tennis court. His captors took him to the southern suburbs of the
city, where he was held prisoner in an underground dungeon for the
next six-and-a-half years.
Anderson was one of 92 foreigners (including 17 Americans) abducted
during Lebanon's bitter civil war. The kidnappings were linked to
Hezbollah, or the Party of God, a militant Shiite Muslim organization
formed in 1982 in reaction to Israel's military presence in Lebanon.
They seized several Americans, including Anderson, soon after Kuwaiti
courts jailed 17 Shiites found guilty of bombing the American and
French embassies there in 1983. Hezbollah in Lebanon received
financial and spiritual support from Iran, where prominent leaders
praised the bombers and kidnappers for performing their duty to Islam.
U.S. relations with Iran--and with Syria, the other major foreign
influence in Lebanon--showed signs of improving by 1990, when the
civil war drew to a close, aided by Syria's intervention on behalf of
the Lebanese army. Eager to win favor from the U.S. in order to
promote its own economic goals, Iran used its influence in Lebanon to
engineer the release of nearly all the hostages over the course of
1991.
Anderson returned to the U.S. and was reunited with his family,
including his daughter Suleme, born three months after his capture. In
1999, he sued the Iranian government for $100 million, accusing it of
sponsoring his kidnappers; he received a multi-million dollar
settlement.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1991 : Hostage Terry Anderson freed in Lebanon
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=5574
1872 : The mystery of the Mary Celeste
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5572
1918 : President Wilson travels to Europe
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5573
1992 : Bush orders U.S. troops to Somalia
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=7101
#########################################
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