November 4, 2009 Iran rallies to mark 30th anniversary of U.S. Embassy takeover Play video

(NECN/ABC) - It was 30 years ago today that Islamic militants stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, setting off what became known as "The Hostage Crisis," that dominated our politics for more than a year. The event also marked Iran as a rogue nation, a status it shows little interest in shedding, even today.

66 Americans were captured with the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran. For Iran's revolutionaries of 1979, this was a triumph over the U.S. superpower.

Today, the U.S. Embassy building is a museum of all things anti-American. Old technical equipment and shredded documents are shown as evidence.

The hostage takers were demanding the U.S. hand over the Shah, who they saw as a cruel dictator and puppet of the West.

Dissatisfaction over the handling of the hostage crisis and a botched rescue attempt contributed to the defeat of President Jimmy Carter in 1980.

Ever since, the Iranian government commemorates the embassy takeover with a rally.

This year, the scene is more complicated. The regime is chanting "Death to America," while publicly negotiating with the U.S. over its nuclear program.

And, protesters are still risking their lives to challenge President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election.

30 years after the embassy takeover, Iran remains a complicated picture with internal turmoil.

ABC's Lara Setrakian reports from Tehran.