their captors. This is considered positively if it keeps the hostage from being harmed, but there have been cases where hostages have tried to shield the captors during an assault or refused to cooperate with the authorities in bringing prosecutions. In some jurisdictions, depending on certain circumstances, standoffs that would usually be handled by police may be transferred to the military. For example, in the United Kingdom, standoffs with terrorists may be transferred to military responsibility for a military assault on the besieged. The threat of such an action ended the 1975 Balcombe Street siege, but the 1980 Iranian Embassy siege ended in a military assault and the deaths of all but one of the hostage-takers. See also Battleplan (documentary TV series) Blitzkrieg Breastwork (fortification) Infiltration Last stand Maneuver warfare Medieval warfare Sangar (fortification) Siege engines Siege equipment Tunnel warfare Lists List of established military terms List of sieges Notes References Further reading Historiography External links Native American Siege Warfare. Siege Kits Scenes of Siege Warfare Three ancient Egyptian Sieges: Megiddo, Dapur, Hermopolis The Siege Of The City Biblical perspectives. Secrets of Lost Empires: Medieval Siege (PBS) Informative and interactive webpages about medieval siege tactics. Military strategy Warfare of the Middle Ages