Pro-government gunmen have opened fire on demonstrators in Tehran, according to local reports, just hours after Trump warned 'do not kill your protesters.'<br /><br />Local media footage showed a woman with blood pouring from a purported gunshot wound in the Iranian capital centre amid furious protests against the Ayatollah's regime.<br /><br />Other images showed a 'militiaman' holding a shotgun running away from the scene as a crowd gathered around the woman who was allegedly killed not far from the iconic Azadi Square.<br /><br />Thousands have flocked to the streets of the Iranian capital after the government admitted that a passenger jet carrying 176 people had been downed by a missile last week. <br />President Donald Trump had sent a message of solidarity to the demonstrators on Saturday, tweeting: 'There cannot be another massacre of peaceful protesters, nor an internet shutdown. The world is watching.' <br />It came after students packed the gates of Amirkabir University of Technology near the former US embassy to protest Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. <br /><br />On Sunday night, tensions in the city appeared to be turning to chaos with demonstrators setting fire to and tearing down posters of the Ayatollah and slain general Qassem Soleimani. <br /><br />Amid shouts of 'Death to Khamenei' security forces opened fire with rubber bullets and tear gas, social media footage showed, as hundreds fled in terror. <br /><br />Roads to Azadi Square were totally gridlocked by the demonstrations which continued late into the night. <br /><br />Many reports claimed that those brutally breaking up the demonstrators were members of the Basij, a paramilitary volunteer wing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, and were acting on the orders of the regime. <br />Riot police armed with water cannon and batons were earlier seen at Amir Kabir, Sharif and Tehran universities as well as Enqelab Square.<br /><br />Around 50 Basij militiamen brandishing paintball guns, potentially to mark protesters to authorities, were also seen near Amir Kabir. <br /><br />Officers could be seen massing in Vali-e Asr Square in the city as calls circulated for protests.<br /><br />A large black banner unveiled in the square bore the names of those killed in the plane crash.<br />The plane crash early on Wednesday killed all 176 people on board, mostly Iranians and Iranian-Canadians. <br /><br />Iran's top Guards commander briefed parliament on Sunday, a day after the armed forces said the Ukrainian airliner was shot down in error in an admission that sparked an angry demonstration. <br /><br />After initially blaming a technical failure, authorities finally admitted to accidentally shooting it down in the face of mounting evidence and accusations by western leaders. <br /><br />The plane was shot down as Iran braced for retaliation after firing ballistic missiles at two bases in Iraq housing American forces. <br /><br />The ballistic missile attack, which caused no casualties, was a response to the killing of General Soleimani, Iran's top general, in a US airstrike in Baghdad.<br />Iranians have expressed anger over the down
