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August 26, 2025 29 mins
We return to November, 1979 when radical Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran and took dozens of Americans hostage.  Mark and Cora Lijek were two American officials stuck in Tehran, and in 2008 they shared their story with the late Peter Earnest, the founding director of the International Spy Museum. And this time they were joined by retired CIA officer Tony Mendez, who passed away in 2019. Tony helped plan and execute an elaborate deception and disguise operation, exfiltrating the diplomats before the Iranians figured it out. Prefer to watch your podcasts? Find us on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@IntlSpyMuseum/podcasts.  Subscribe to Sasha's Substack, HUMINT, to get more intelligence stories: https://sashaingber.substack.com/  And if you have feedback or want to hear about a particular topic, you can reach us by E-mail at SpyCast@Spymuseum.org.  This show is brought to you from Goat Rodeo, Airwave, and the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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