President Donald Trump sent a message written in Persian to Iranians who were openly protesting the country’s oppressive Islamic government on Saturday, which comes in response to Iran admitting this week that it shot down a passenger plane.
According to a Google translation, Trump tweeted, “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.”
به مردم شجاع و رنج کشیده ایران: من از ابتدای دوره ریاست جمهوریم با شما ایستاده‌ام و دولت من همچنان با شما خواهد ایستاد. ما اعتراضات شما را از نزدیک دنبال می کنیم. شجاعت شما الهام بخش است.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2020
Trump tweeted out nearly the exact same statement in English, writing, “To the brave, long-suffering people of Iran: I’ve stood with you since the beginning of my Presidency, and my Administration will continue to stand with you. We are following your protests closely, and are inspired by your courage.”
To the brave, long-suffering people of Iran: I've stood with you since the beginning of my Presidency, and my Administration will continue to stand with you. We are following your protests closely, and are inspired by your courage.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2020
Trump continued, “The government of Iran must allow human rights groups to monitor and report facts from the ground on the ongoing protests by the Iranian people. There can not be another massacre of peaceful protesters, nor an internet shutdown. The world is watching.”
The government of Iran must allow human rights groups to monitor and report facts from the ground on the ongoing protests by the Iranian people. There can not be another massacre of peaceful protesters, nor an internet shutdown. The world is watching.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2020
Trump also reverberated the same message in Persian:
دولت ایران باید به گروه‌های حقوق بشر اجازه بدهد حقیقت کنونی اعتراضات در جریان مردم ایران را نظارت کرده و گزارش بدهند. نباید شاهد کشتار دوباره ی معترضان مسالمت آمیز و یا قطع اینترنت باشیم. جهان نظاره گر این اتفاقات است.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 11, 2020
Trump’s comments come as Iranian protesters flooded to streets of Tehran by the thousands to demand that Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Hosseini Khamenei resign after his government told the world that it did not shoot down the Ukrainian 737 last week and then reversed course on Friday, admitting that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is a designated terrorist group, shot down the plane.
“Angry crowds gathered on Saturday night in at least four locations in Tehran, chanting ‘death to liars’ and calling for the country’s supreme leader to step down over the tragic military blunder, video from the scene shows,” The Daily Mail reported. “‘Death to the Islamic Republic’ protesters chanted, as the regime’s paramilitary security force allegedly used ambulances to sneak heavily armed paramilitary police into the middle of crowds to disperse the demonstration.”
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. pic.twitter.com/tBOjv9XsIG
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) January 11, 2020
“Why should I vote for this regime?” Hesham Ghanbari, 27, told Reuters. “I don’t trust them at all. They lied to us about the plane crash. Why should I trust them when they don’t trust people enough to tell the truth?”
“Protests erupted in Tehran and other Iranian cities as dumbfounded citizens found a new reason to mistrust Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, and other officials,” The New York Times reported. “Protest videos even showed some shouting ‘Khamenei is a murderer!’ and anti-riot police tear-gassing violent demonstrators.”
The thousands of young demonstrators who were protesting the Islamic regime did so knowing that just a couple of months ago, the Iranian government ordered the killings of 1,500 people in an effort to stamp out the protests.
“About 1,500 people were killed during less than two weeks of unrest that started on Nov. 15,” Reuters reported. “The toll, provided to Reuters by three Iranian interior ministry officials, included at least 17 teenagers and about 400 women as well as some members of the security forces and police.”
A source told Reuters that Khamenei told his top officials, “The Islamic Republic is in danger. Do whatever it takes to end it. You have my order.”
This report has been updated to include additional information.