At least 9 killed in pro-Iran protest at US consulate in Pakistan’s Karachi

The protest erupted following the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a joint US and Israeli strike.

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.

Police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed told Al Jazeera at least nine bodies were brought to Karachi’s civil hospital.

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 region, known for its Himalayan peaks popular with tourists.

“A large number of protesters have gathered outside the UN office in GB and ⁠burned down the building,” local government spokesperson Shabbir Mir told Reuters news agency, adding no casualties had been reported.

In the central city of Lahore, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the US consulate but there were no reports of violence.

“Some of the protesters tried to damage ‌the security gate, hundreds of yards away for the consulate. However, police stopped them without use of force,” Aqeel Raza, a witness, told Reuters.

A demonstration is also expected near the diplomatic enclave housing the US embassy in 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.