Tupac Amaru Seizure of Japanese Embassy in Peru
On December 17, 1996 Twenty-three members of the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) took several hundred people hostage at a party given at the Japanese Ambassador's residence in Lima, Peru. Among the hostages were several U.S. officials, foreign ambassadors and other diplomats, Peruvian Government officials, and Japanese businessmen. The group demanded the release of all MRTA members in prison and safe passage for them and the hostage takers. The terrorists released most of the hostages in December but held 81 Peruvians and Japanese citizens for several months. The remaining hostages were rescued in April of 1997 by government soldiers, resulting in the death of one hostaqe, 2 soldiers and all 14 MRTA rebels.
The attack on the embassy was the most audcaious of the groups 15 year history. Infiltrating in an ambulance there were able to pass by more than 300 security officials unnoticed.The group demanded the release of roughly 400 members from prison which included American Lori Berenson, and a revision of Peru's "neo-liberal" free market reforms.
As negotiations bogged down, President Fujimori blamed the Tupac Amaru rebels while at the same time preparing for a military assault, involving among other things digging tunnels underneath the embassy, a process that the militants became aware of, leading them to call off negotiations and the subsequent raid on April 22, 1997.
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