Iranians take to social media to push for more protests: ‘We’re coming to the streets’

Iranian anti-government protesters have used social media to continue their calls for further protests in Tehran, Reuters reports.

Protesters have been holding daily demonstrations in Tehran and other cities around the country since the Iranian government admitted last week that it mistakenly shot down a Ukraine-bound commercial plane.

All 176 people on board the plane — most of whom were Ukrainian, Canadian or Iranian — were killed.

The Iranian government said that its military misidentified the plane as a U.S. missile. The plane went down Jan. 8, just hours after Iran launched a retaliatory missile strike on two Iraqi military bases that house U.S. troops. The attack was in response to a U.S. air strike that killed Iran’s top military commander, Qassem Soleimani, in Baghdad the week before.

A social media post on Wednesday reportedly read, “We’re coming to the streets,” and urged people to stand and protest against a “thieving and corrupt government.”

Immediately following Iran’s admission, there was widespread unrest in Tehran. Videos surfaced on the internet of Iranian authorities beating protesters with electric batons, according to the wire service. However, protests Tuesday didn’t end in violence, so it’s unclear if continued protesting will lead to sustained violence.

The political unrest follows the events of two months ago, when hundreds of Iranian protesters were killed by authorities after an outcry sparked by fuel price hikes.