Missing Airman Raises Concerns That Iran Could Gain Leverage Over the U.S.

Since 1979, Iran has repeatedly used Americans and Europeans detained on its territory to win concessions over more powerful adversaries.Women walking by a mural of the Statue of Liberty on the outer wall of the former U.S. Embassy in Tehran. In 1979, a group of militant students took over the embassy and kept 52 Americans captive for 444 days.