The 1979 Iranian Hostage Crisis marred the Carter Administration and was a source of national tension. The hostages were released on the day of Ronald Reagan’s inauguration, and now, nearly four decades later, the hostages who were held for 444 days by Iranian students are receiving compensation from the US government for their time in captivity.
On Thursday, the Washington Post reported that a provision in the omnibus spending bill President Obama signed last week provided up to $4.4 million to be paid to each of the 37 surviving hostages or to the estates of the 16 others who have died since their 1981 release. The law authorizes payments of up to $600,000 for each spouse or child of a hostage.
Money for this compensation will come partially from a $9 billion penalty payed by the French bank BNP Paribas for violating sanctions placed by the UN prohibiting conducting business with Iran, Cuba, and Sudan. The fund is to remain open for 10 years so that it can be replenished by future fines.
Lawyers representing the hostages told the Post that they expect all survivors and estates to ultimately be paid in full.
“Iran is not paying the money, but it’s as close as you can get,” one attorney, Thomas Lankford, told the Post.
Under the terms of the Algiers Accords that led to their release in January of 1981, the hostages were barred from taking legal action against Iran. The most famous offer of compensation after their release was from Major League Baseball Commissioner at the time Bowie Kuhn, who gave each of the hostages lifetime passes to games.
Past attempts at passing financial compensation legislation in Congress had failed, but some hostages believe that the Iran nuclear deal achieved earlier this year helped spur Congress towards approving this fund.
The law also provides potential benefits for other terror attack victims, such as the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, as well as first responders to the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.