Six Killed as Shiite Protesters Storm US Consulate in Karachi Over Iran Leader's Death
Authorities have confirmed that at least six people were killed and approximately a dozen others wounded in violent clashes with police and paramilitary forces on Sunday. The deadly confrontation erupted after hundreds of Shiite protesters stormed the United States Consulate in the Pakistani port city of Karachi.
Violence Erupts Following Attack on Iran
The violent protests came just hours after the United States and Israel launched a coordinated attack on Iran, resulting in the death of the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. This geopolitical event triggered immediate and widespread outrage among Shiite communities across Pakistan.
Summaiya Syed Tariq, a police surgeon at Karachi's main government hospital, confirmed that six bodies and multiple injured individuals were brought to the facility for treatment. Karachi, which serves as the capital of southern Sindh province, is Pakistan's largest and most populous city.
Consulate Perimeter Breached and Police Post Torched
Senior police official Irfan Baloch reported that protesters briefly attacked the perimeter of the US Consulate before being dispersed by security forces. "The situation is now fully under our control," Baloch stated emphatically.
He categorically dismissed as baseless any reports suggesting that parts of the consulate building had been set ablaze. However, Baloch acknowledged that protesters had torched a nearby police post and smashed several windows of the consulate before security forces arrived to regain control of the area.
Shiite Community Mobilizes Across Pakistan
Witnesses described dozens of Shiite protesters remaining gathered approximately one kilometer (half a mile) from the consulate, actively urging others to join their demonstration. Shiites constitute roughly 15% of Pakistan's population of about 250 million people, representing one of the largest Shiite communities globally.
While Shiite groups in Pakistan have frequently organized anti-Israel and anti-US rallies in the past, violent clashes of this magnitude and intensity remain relatively rare occurrences.
Protests Spread to Lahore Consulate
In a related development, Shiite protesters also held a rally near the US Consulate in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province. Senior police official Faisal Kamran reported that demonstrators attempted to protest outside the consulate but were not permitted to do so.
Police dispersed the crowd when they tried to march toward the building, preventing any breach of security at the Lahore facility. The simultaneous protests in both Karachi and Lahore demonstrate the widespread nature of the Shiite response to the killing of Iran's supreme leader.
Associated Press writers Babar Dogar in Lahore, Pakistan, and Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, contributed to this comprehensive report on the escalating tensions and violent clashes in Pakistan.
