After a day or two of silence, the streets of Tehran were filled once more by thousands of Iranian protestors now demanding the resignation of those responsible for the downing of an Ukrainian airliner which killed 176 passengers and crew. The protest blew after Iranian president Hassan Rouhani admitted that it was one of Iran’s ballistic missiles which hit the Ukrainian airplane minutes after it took off in Baghdad’s international airport.

While blaming “human error” and “US adventurism”, Rouhani’s explanation did nothing in quelling the emotions of Iranians affected by the attack against the airplane, especially now that reports are in that US troops escaped those Iranian missile attacks unscathed after getting prior information from US Iraqi allies. No one was killed among hundreds of US servicemen, yet, unfortunately, no such privilege was given to the pilots, crew and passengers of the Ukrainian airline which led to their untimely demise.

Protestors stormed the Amirkabir University which is near the abandoned US embassy and demanded for the resignation not only of Rouhani but of Iran’s Supreme Religious leader Al Khamenei whom protestors accused of lying. Several days ago, thousands of Iranians went to the streets in support of Khamenei who called on the people to avenge the death of Iranian general Osem Soleimani.

Now, the tables had been turned and the people’s anger is now directed against the Tehran government which continues to disavow the incident, even describing it as a consequence of US adventurism.

Among the 176 passengers, at least 76 of them are of Canadian citizenship, several more holders of Ukrainian passports while the rest, estimated to be at least 130, are of Iranian descent.