At least 9 killed in pro-Iran protest at US consulate in Pakistan’s Karachi
The protest erupted following assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in joint US-Israeli strikes.
At least nine people have been killed near a United States consulate in the Pakistani city of Karachi after protests broke out following the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, an official has told Al Jazeera.
Several others were injured as security forces opened fire to scatter hundreds of pro-Iranian protesters trying to storm the consulate early on Sunday morning.
Video footage shared online and verified by Al Jazeera showed a wounded person being transported by bystanders. Other images showed protesters attempting to storm the US consulate building located on the city’s Mai Kolachi Road.
Large protests also broke out in other parts of Pakistan.
Protesters set fire to a United Nations office building in Pakistan’s northern city of Skardu, in the Shia-majority Gilgit Baltistan (GB) region, known for its Himalayan peaks popular with tourists.
In the central city of Lahore, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the US consulate, but there were no reports of violence.
A demonstration is also expected near the diplomatic enclave housing the US embassy in the capital, Islamabad, on Sunday afternoon.
Protests over Khamenei’s killing have also broken out elsewhere in the world, including Iraq, Morocco, and Indian-administered Kashmir.
Pro-Iranian protesters gathered outside the Green Zone in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, where the US embassy is located.
