Presumably, the area is under some sort of curfew and/or military martial law simply to stabilize the area. If this were the case, then the command structure has protocols to follow as far as limiting gatherings and demonstrations in an effort to maintain order. Peaceful or no, large masses of people are hard to maintain and can get out of control rather easily. It's easy to armchair quarterback from the safety of you pathetic cubicle, but take the long view: stability needs to be achieved first, then democracy. We did the same thing in Europe in '45.