The Carter administration allowed the former shah into the United States for medical treatment. Iran demanded the shah’s return. On November 4, students seized the U.S. Embassy and 52 diplomats in Tehran. The hostage crisis dragged on for 444 days. On November 5, interim Prime Minister Bazargan resigned, along with his cabinet, to protest the embassy seizure. On November 12, Washington cut off oil imports from Iran. On November 14, President Carter issued Executive Order 12170 freezing an estimated $6 billion of Iranian assets and official bank deposits in the United States.