translated from Spanish: Iranians protest against passenger plane downing

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian protesters defied a strong police presence on Sunday to protest against the days of denial by the U.S. government that it shot down a passenger plane with 176 people on board, the most recent riot in shake up the Iranian capital amid rising tensions with the United States.Some videos posted online showed protesters shouting slogans at the government and moving through subway stations and approaches, many near Azadi Square, after that hours earlier people were summoned to protest there. Other videos suggested similar protests were taking place in other Iranian cities.

Anti-riot policemen in black clothing and helmets had gathered in the Plaza de Vali-e Asr, at the University of Tehran and other landmarks. Members of the Revolutionary Guard patrolled motorcycles and plainclothes officers roamed the city. People looked at the ground as they passed quickly with the police, trying not to get attention. The 176 people on board, mostly Iranians and Canadian-Iranians, died when the plane crashed. After initially blaming a technical ruling and insisting that it was not the fault of the armed forces, the authorities finally admitted Saturday that they had shot down the aircraft in error, in the face of evidence and accusations from Western governments. The plane was shot down as Iran prepared for possible retaliation after launching ballistic missiles at two bases in Iraq that housed U.S. troops. The missile attack, which did not cause casualties, was a response to the death of General Qassem Soleimani, Iran’s most important commander, in an airstrike by the Americans in Baghdad. There were no actions in retaliation. The Iranians have expressed outrage at the downing of the plane and misleading explanations from the authorities offered after the tragedy. They have also expressed their grief for the deceased, including many young people with promising futures studying abroad.” Even talking about it makes my heart speed up and saddens me,” said Zahra Razeghi, a tehran resident. “I’m ashamed when I think of their families.” Denial and hiding the truth over the past three days greatly aggravated the suffering and pain of families and mine,” she added. A man who only identified himself as Saeed commented that the mostly state-dependent media conceded the cause of the accident for “political reasons.” Subsequent events changed the landscape and they had to tell the truth,” he added. Hundreds of students gathered Sunday at Shahid Beheshti University to remember the victims and protest against the authorities for concealing the cause of the crash, according to the semi-official news agency ISNA. They later dispersed peacefully.
Meanwhile, some people, including Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, expressed their grief by posting completely black images on their Instagram accounts.

Bahareh Arvin, a reformist member of the Tehran city council, sent a message on social media claiming that he will resign in protest at the government’s lies and corruption, denouncing that “under the current scheme, there is no possibility of reform.” Several Iranian artists, including the celebrated director Masoud Kimiai, withdrew from an international film festival. Two state TV news anchors resigned in protest at false reports about the plane’s downfall. President Donald Trump, who has expressed support for the latest protests against Iran’s government, addressed the country’s authorities with a tweet that read, “Don’t kill your protesters.” The world is watching them. And more importantly, the United States of America is watching,” he wrote.



Original source in Spanish

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