READERS GUIDE

Questions and Topics for Discussion

1. What stood out to you as you learned more about the history of Iran?

2. Do extreme measures work when getting messages across?

3. What did you learn about procedure when it came to the authorities? How might they approach the situation if it were to happen today? What tools or technologies do we have now that weren’t utilized or didn’t exist back then?

4. Which parts of the unfolding narrative stood out most to you?

5. Talk about Ben Macintyre’s writing. How did it convey the situation? What context do we now have that all those involved didn’t know back then?

6. The hostage takers’ demand seemed impossible: Asking the British government to force an enemy to release prisoners. Why do you think the gunmen thought taking the embassy was their only recourse? What do you think of their actions?

7. How do the events that happen in The Siege help you understand the present-day relations with Iran?

8. At the onset of the crisis, the Iranian government accused the U.S. government of orchestrating the siege. In the forty years since the events, how has misinformation changed? Or has it?

9. How prepared were the authorities—or even the gunman who stormed the embassy—for an actual hostage situation?

10. Did the press help or hinder the standoff? Did the police make the situation better or worse for the hostages?

11. How familiar were you with the history of Arabistan, also called Khuzestan, before reading this book? How much did you know about the strife between the Arabs and the Iranian government under the ayatollah?

12. Can the events that unfold in The Siege be explained simply as good versus bad? Is there a wrong side? Or just a wrong way of going about things?

13. The book discusses Stockholm syndrome and Lima syndrome, and throughout the narrative, many of the hostages expressed fondness toward their captors. Why do you think this is? Why do you think the hostages, after being taken into the yard, begged the soldiers to spare Fowzi’s life?

14. The book says, “It is perfectly possible for different people to listen to the same spoken words and yet hear entirely opposite meanings.” What is each side saying? What is the other side hearing?

15. In your opinion, how did the SAS officers handle the hostage takers? Do you think the officers were justified in using force against them, or do you think they wielded it excessively?

16. In the aftermath of Operation Nimrod, despite freeing the hostages, why did the police negotiators feel like they had failed? How did the operation affect everyone involved in the years since?

17. What did the British public take away from the operation? What message, if any, did Britain send to the rest of the world or to those who might attempt similar situations?

18. Do you think we could witness a similar situation today? Why or why not?

19. How might events have unfolded if they had instead occurred in the United States during the Carter administration?