This is the 15928th most frequent Russian word.
протестами
"Протестами" means "protests" (instrumental plural form).
The word 'протестами' here is instrumental plural of 'протест', used to describe the means or method by which the students expressed their feelings.
Студенты выразили своё недовольство протестами.
Students expressed their dissatisfaction through protests.
'Протестами' here indicates the nature of the groups noticed on the city streets, functioning as an instrumental case to show association or accompaniment.
На улицах города были замечены группы с протестами.
Groups with protests were noticed on the streets of the city.
In this example, 'протестами' is used to describe the situation or phenomena affecting the government, utilizing the instrumental case to denote the events in question.