Photojournalist relives Iran hostage crisis in exhibit
Last Updated: Wednesday, November 4, 2009 | 11:28 AM ET
The Canadian Press
Thirty years ago, Canadian Press photographer Peter Bregg eagerly flew to Iran to cover the capture of 66 hostages at the American Embassy in Tehran.
As the weeks turned into months, Bregg and Canadian Press reporter Doug Long were among the only western journalists who remained in the country to report on the drama.
To mark the 30th anniversary of the start of the hostage-taking, Bregg is hosting a photo exhibit in Toronto showcasing his work in Iran and talking about his near-death experiences.
On Nov. 4, 1979, the hostage-takers stormed the American Embassy to take their captives, keeping the might of the U.S. army at bay. A failed rescue attempt resulted in the deaths of eight U.S. soldiers. Thirteen hostages were released a couple weeks into the ordeal and another was freed months later.
Meanwhile, six other Americans hid for three months in the Canadian and Swedish embassies until they were spirited out of the country with Canadian passports in January 1980, an escape that would be dubbed the Canadian Caper.
'I had been told ... if ever you get to the point where you're really, really afraid for your life, get out; and I never really felt that way.'—Photographer Peter Bregg
Despite all the high-stakes drama, Bregg says, the few reporters on the ground in Iran were likely too naive about the risks they faced in doing their jobs.
"I should've realized if they can hold 52 Americans for 444 days, what chance did I have?" he said in an interview.
"I was maybe being too cocky, but I had been told a long time ago by a seasoned fellow journalist that if ever you get to the point where you're really, really afraid for your life, get out; and I never really felt that way."
Abducted
But Bregg and Long did encounter trouble when they were abducted at gunpoint from the home they rented on the one-year anniversary of the hostage-taking.
"These four fellows showed up with pistols in their belts, and of course, we knew they were revolutionary guards, you just know those things," Bregg recalled.
They were blindfolded, taken into the basement and made to sit against the wall with their hands above their heads. After an hour, they were loaded into a vehicle and driven to another location, where they were held for another four or five hours and interrogated.
'Today it's different, today they play for keeps.'—Photographer Peter Bregg
"Around midnight they take us out of this location and take us to a private home, where they handed us over to another four revolutionary guards — and these guys had machine-guns, they looked more ominous."
They were surprised when their captors led them to a bedroom and told them to sleep for the night. In the morning, they were awakened for a breakfast of tea and toast. They were returned home, interrogated one more time and then ordered expelled from the country.
About a week later, they acquired new visas to re-enter Iran and were back in Tehran in time to report on the release of the last 52 American hostages.
Iran different today
Given the risks he encountered, would he take on the assignment again? Probably, Bregg said, as he helped set up the life-sized canvasses with black-and-white prints that adorn his exhibit at the IX Gallery in Toronto.
The photographs include images of protesters burning American flags, child soldiers of the Iranian army and overjoyed hostages preparing to fly home.
But he wouldn't take on a similar assignment today in Iran, Bregg hastened to add.
"Today it's different, today they play for keeps," he said. "It's a different world today, people disappear, so I think if I was sensible and wise, I might not go back.
"Just last week, Ali Khamenei, the supreme ruler, said that anyone who challenges the legality of the presidential vote is committing a crime — in this country we call that freedom of speech. When people behave that way you have to be concerned that maybe you'll become a victim."
