Violent protests broke out in Pakistan and Iraq on Sunday following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in joint U.S.-Israeli strikes, leaving at least nine people dead and dozens injured as demonstrations escalated into clashes with security forces.
In Pakistan’s southern city of Karachi, protesters stormed the outer perimeter of the U.S. Consulate, prompting armed security personnel to open fire after crowds breached security barriers, according to local authorities.
Demonstrators chanting anti-American and anti-Israel slogans gathered outside the diplomatic compound shortly after news of Khamenei’s death spread across the region.
Officials said protesters set a vehicle ablaze near the main entrance and clashed with police before the situation turned deadly.
Sukhdev Assardas Hemnani, a spokesperson for the local government, said consulate guards fired shots as demonstrators pushed through the outer security layer.
Police confirmed that at least nine people were killed and 34 others injured, all suffering gunshot wounds, according to Karachi’s Civil Hospital.
U.S. diplomatic missions in Pakistan did not immediately comment on the incident.
In a brief statement posted online, the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said it was monitoring demonstrations and advised American citizens to exercise heightened caution.
Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi called for calm, urging protesters to remain peaceful while expressing solidarity with public grief over developments in Iran. Provincial authorities have ordered a high-level investigation into the violence.
Protests quickly spread to other cities across Pakistan, home to one of the world’s largest Shi’ite Muslim populations outside Iran.
In the northern region of Gilgit-Baltistan, demonstrators set fire to a United Nations office building in the city of Skardu.
Local officials said the facility was destroyed but reported no casualties.
Hundreds of protesters also gathered outside the U.S. consulate in Lahore, where police used tear gas to disperse crowds attempting to damage security installations.
In the capital, Islamabad, authorities blocked roads leading to the diplomatic enclave known as the Red Zone as protesters attempted to march toward foreign embassies.
Western diplomatic missions across Pakistan heightened security measures, restricting staff movements amid fears of further unrest.
Clashes in Baghdad
In neighboring Iraq, hundreds of pro-Iranian demonstrators assembled outside Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone, where the U.S. embassy is located.
Iraqi security forces fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the crowd and prevent protesters from breaching the heavily guarded area.
The demonstrations reflect rising anger among supporters of Iran across parts of the Middle East following Khamenei’s death, an event that has significantly escalated regional tensions.,
