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| Into the Den of Spies |
| Former U.S. Embassy in Tehran is a window into the past |
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Chris Gelken (chrisg)  |
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Published 2007-11-21 04:23 (KST) |
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 | |  The former U.S. Embassy in Tehran. | | | ©2007 Chris Gelken | | It was an odd experience to say the very least.
Walking through the main gate into the former United States Embassy in Tehran was by no means a disappointment, but faced with a very ordinary looking building (at least on the outside) it was something of an anticlimax. I don't know why, I am not really sure what I had been expecting.
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FROM THE SECTION |
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| As the invited guests of a group tour comprised of Iranian students, my wife and I had been anticipating this visit for weeks. The embassy and the events of Nov. 4, 1979, have such a significant place in history that it's not surprising anyone entering the grounds would have something fluttering in their tummy.
The official guide met us at the doors of the embassy building and his broad smile quickly disappeared as he found himself staring into the lenses of a dozen or so assorted cameras.
No photography, he insisted, it was forbidden. But our group leader was having none of it. A rapid-fire exchange of Farsi and the presentation of a letter of authorization soon had the situation sorted and the cameras were eagerly switched back on.
Inside the main building very little of the original decoration remains. The walls have been covered with murals, posters and slogans recording the 1979 Islamic Revolution. As we walked up the stairs, immediately on the left of the entrance hall, we were surrounded by well-crafted murals, a medley of odd images of the takeover, atrocities in the Middle East and caricatures of U.S. military might.
 | | | Detail from a banner on the outside wall of the embassy. | | | ©2007 Chris Gelken | | Most of the rooms on the first floor had been turned into mini-galleries containing sculptures, installation art and more murals.
I say most, because half way along the corridor that ran the entire length of the building we came to the "glassy room" -- a bizarre room within a room.
"This is where the agents held their secret conversations," explained the guide.
Made entirely of double-glazed Perspex, the plastic soundproof "bubble" was bare of any furniture or decoration, with the exception of an unremarkable conference table and chairs. The addition of a few mannequins dressed in wide collar shirts and jackets, and sporting 1970s haircuts masquerading as CIA spies rather spoiled the effect. They simply didn't look evil enough to be admitted to this soundproofed inner-sanctum of the den of spies.
It was something out of a B-grade 1960s spy movie, though I suppose at the time it was probably considered the height in anti-eavesdropping technology.
"The air between the double glazing can be sucked out creating a vacuum," the guide told us, "and it was made of clear glass so people could see if anyone was trying to listen with microphones."
 | | | The emblem of the embassy. | | | ©2007 Chris Gelken | | I paused to imagine the conversations that had possibly taken place in that strange room. CIA spooks swapping secrets with undercover agents, plotting the counter-coup to topple the revolutionary government and reinstall the deposed Shah of Iran.
Did it all happen that way? Who knows? According to U.S. records there were only three CIA officers in the embassy when it was seized, and all of them were allegedly fairly inexperienced in Iranian affairs. But then, the three that were identified were doubtless the "residents," agents who had been identified as such to the ambassador. But what about the "illegals," as contemporary spy novels describe non-declared agents acting outside the jurisdiction of the ambassador and his staff? How many of those were lurking in the shadows during that hot and memorable summer?
Given its location, Tehran would have been an important intelligence-gathering center for the region. And given the events taking place just outside the embassy gates, it's unlikely that Washington would really have staffed this strategic site with just three Middle East rookies.
If the glassy room was the inner sanctum, then the fortress-like communications room at the far end of the corridor was the nerve center. Banks of aged telecommunications devices are on display, protected from inquisitive fingers by sheets of half-inch thick plastic.
Despite the fact that this was the dawn of the digital age, and by dawn I mean the first rays of the sun were just creeping over the horizon, there was little to suggest the digital revolution was just around the corner. With the exception of a few pre-first generation computer monitors and keyboards, most of the telecoms gear was still based on the paper tape technology, and teletypes and printers lined the walls.
 | | | A woman walks past banner outside the embassy. | | | ©2007 Chris Gelken | | I have to admit, the three rooms that made up the "comcen" contained an impressive array of equipment that the guide explained was used to listen in on local military and police radio communications, monitor the telephones of anyone of interest, and process the information for transmission back to CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia. Those three declared agents would have been busy.
A three-inch thick galvanized steel door protected the most sensitive eavesdropping equipment, and according to the guide, everything was pretty much the same as it was the day the students stormed in, including the worn and faded tile carpet.
Quite a lot about the building was worn and faded, but it struck me that for many people the memories of that November day are still as crisp and sharp as if they had happened yesterday. Sharp enough, it appears, still to be acting as a proverbial thorn in the side of any possible rapprochement between Washington and Tehran.
Perhaps it's time to let the memories fade a little, too. Remember, certainly, but as a historical event from another time, and letting the future take care of itself.
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©2007 OhmyNews
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