December 17, 1996
During a gala in Lima at the nearby home of the Japanese ambassador, communist guerillas swooped in and took hundreds of dignataries and diplomats hostage. The rebels, members of a group called the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, demanded the release of their comrades in jail. By the time Peruvian commandos stormed the residence 126 days later, all but 72 of the hostages had been freed. All of the guerillas were killed during the rescue.