Iranian security forces used tear gas and live rounds to turn back angry crowds Sunday night as people rallied against the Islamic Republic’s leadership.

The protests began after the government admitted a Ukrainian jetliner was downed by the country’s own military.

No immediate report in Iranian state-run media confirmed the incident near Azadi, or Freedom Square in Tehran, however much of the action was captured on video including those chanting slogans against the regime and the former head of its foreign terrorist organization, Qasem Soleimani.

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Hossein Rahimi, head of the Tehran police, denied his forces had shot at demonstraters.

“At protests, police absolutely did not shoot because the capital’s police officers have been given orders to show restraint,” he said in a statement carried by the state broadcaster’s website.

Videos sent to the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran and later verified by the Associated Press contradict that claim. They show a large crowd of demonstrators fleeing as a tear gas canister landed among them.

Choking protesters try to escape the fumes while calling for help, with one woman crying in Farsi: “They fired tear gas at people! Azadi Square. Death to the dictator!”

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Another video shows a woman being carried away in the aftermath as a blood trail can be seen on the ground. Those around her cry out that she has been shot by live ammunition in the leg.

“Oh my God, she’s bleeding nonstop!” one person shouts. Another shouts: “Bandage it!”

Photos and video after the incident show pools of blood on the sidewalk.

Earlier in the day, U.S. President President Trump warned Iran’s leaders not to kill their protesters.

To the leaders of Iran – DO NOT KILL YOUR PROTESTERS. Thousands have already been killed or imprisoned by you, and the World is watching. More importantly, the USA is watching. Turn your internet back on and let reporters roam free! Stop the killing of your great Iranian people! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2020

The crash of the Ukraine International Airline jetliner early on Wednesday killed all 176 people on board, mostly Iranians and Iranian-Canadians.

After pointing to a technical failure and insisting for three days that the Iranian armed forces were not to blame, authorities on Saturday admitted accidentally shooting it down in the face of mounting evidence and accusations by Western leaders.

Amirali Hajizadeh, the head of the aerospace division of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), told reporters on Saturday that, upon hearing that Iranian military forces shot down the civilian aircraft, “I wished I was dead so I wouldn’t have to see such an accident.”

Breitbart News reported Trump shared messages of support for the Iran protesters over the weekend, promising not to turn away as they struggled to let their voices be heard.

Trump wrote the message on Twitter in English and Farsi as hundreds of Iranians protested the regime in Tehran.

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

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

The president also pressured the Iranian government to allow human rights groups to monitor the protests.

“There can not be another massacre of peaceful protesters, nor an internet shutdown,” he wrote. “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

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also demonstrated support for the protesters.

“We stand with the Iranian people who deserve a better future,” he wrote, criticizing the Iranian regime’s “lies, corruption, ineptitude, and brutality.”

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

Breaking:

People in #Iran have just begun the protest against de regime.

Students of Amirkabir university in Tehran chant slogans against the supreme leader!#IranProtests#IranPlaneCrash pic.twitter.com/rzr7w6Oaju — Alireza Azami (@Alireza__Azami) January 11, 2020

At earlier protests Saturday, students in Tehran shouted at police: “They are lying that our enemy is America! Our enemy is right here!”

AP contributed to this report