At least 22 people have died following pro-Iran demonstrations in Pakistan and Iraq, sparked by the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli strikes. In Karachi, hundreds marched on the US consulate, with some entering the reception hall and starting a small fire. Security forces opened fire, killing ten and injuring over 30, according to a local medical official.
Violence in other parts of Pakistan left ten dead in Gilgit-Baltistan and two in Islamabad. In Iraq, security forces fired teargas as protesters tried to storm the US embassy in Baghdad's Green Zone. The protests reflect anger across the region over Khamenei's death, which has shaken the Middle East and the wider Islamic world.
Khamenei, 86, had been Iran's head of state for 36 years and oversaw a network of Iran-backed militias. Iran-aligned groups including Hamas, the Houthis, and Hezbollah issued statements of condolence, praising him as a martyr. Hezbollah's secretary general described him as leading 'the march of jihad and resistance against the tyrannical and oppressive American and Israeli forces.'
In Lebanon, tens of thousands of Hezbollah supporters mourned Khamenei in Beirut's southern suburbs. In Yemen, pro-Houthi media reported a 'million-person march' in support of Iran. However, in Syria, where Iran backed Bashar al-Assad until his overthrow in 2024, some celebrated the news. Government reactions across the Middle East have been muted, with most foreign ministries not commenting on the assassination.
