In a tweet in Persian, President Donald Trump on Saturday addressed the Iranian people saying his administration is aware of their protests against the Islamic Republic and stood with them.
Describing the people of Iran as brave and suffering, President Trump reiterated in his tweet, "To the brave and suffering Iranian people: I have stood with you since the beginning of my presidency, and my government will continue to stand with you. We are following your protests closely. Your courage is inspiring."
Meanwhile, thousands of Iranians poured into the streets of the capital city, Tehran, and many other towns, including Isfahan, Hamadan, Rasht, and Sari, on Saturday January 11 to protest the downing of a Ukraine Airlines passenger plane last Wednesday and the government cover-up that followed.
The Ukrainian International Airlines Boeing 737-800, flying to Kyiv, was shot down shortly after taking off from Tehran's Imam Khomeini airport by a missile fired by air-defense crews, killing all 176 people on board.
It took three days for the Islamic Republic authorities to admit the plane was shot down.
Protesters in several cities chanted slogans against the Islamic republic regime, and called upon its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to step down.
"Death to the dictator," some chanted. In another video circulated on social media, demonstrators chanted, "Khamenei have shame! Leave the country alone!"
In Tehran, security forces rushed in, firing into the air and using tear gas to disperse the protesters.
Reacting to the demonstrations, President Trump noted in another tweet that Iran's government "must allow human rights groups to monitor and report facts from the ground on the ongoing protests by the Iranian people."
"There cannot be another massacre of peaceful protesters, nor an internet shutdown. The world is watching," Trump affirmed.
President Trump was referring to mid-November protests in more than 100 cities and 28 out of 31 provinces of Iran that, according to Reuters, left 1,500 dead.
The U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, also expressed his support for the people of Iran, and noted in a tweet, "The voice of the Iranian people is clear. They are fed up with the regime's lies, corruption, ineptitude, and brutality of the IRGC under @khamenei_ir's kleptocracy. We stand with the Iranian people who deserve a better future."
Furthermore, Pompeo asserted that the Iranian nation deserves a better life.
