At least 23 people were killed on Sunday after violent clashes and arson took place in different cities of Pakistan protesting the killing of Iran’s Shiite Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran’s Supreme Leader was killed on Saturday in a coordinated US-Israeli airstrike on Tehran with his death confirmed on Sunday, prompting an outburst of anger by Pakistan’s Shiites, who are about 20 per cent of the 240 million population.
Among those killed were 10 persons in the port of Karachi where security guards at the US Consulate fired on demonstrators who breached the outer wall. Another 11 were killed in the northern city of Skardu, where the crowd torched a UN office, and two in Islamabad.
Protesters in Karachi chanted “Death to America! Death to Israel!” at the consulate, where witnesses heard gunfire and saw tear gas fired in surrounding streets. Consulate security staff opened fire at a crowd who were pushed back after breaching the outer security layer, said Sukhdev Assardas Hemnani, a local government spokesman. The demonstrators also set a vehicle ablaze outside the main gate and clashed with police, he said. “We are in constant touch with consulate officials. They are all safe,” Hemnani added.
The US Embassy in Islamabad said it was monitoring reports of demonstrations, and advised US citizens to observe good personal security practices. Thirty-four people were injured, the police said. Karachi’s Civil Hospital said all those killed or injured were hit with gunshots. The Sindh government has ordered an inquiry in this regard.
Skirmishes in Iraq too
Meanwhile, Iraqi police fired tear gas and stun grenades to scatter hundreds of
pro-Iranian protesters gathered outside the Green Zone in the capital Baghdad, where the US Embassy is located.
Pertinently, Pakistan and Iraq have the largest Shi’ite Muslim populations after Iran.