Demonstrations against the US-Israeli bombing campaign in Iran turned violent in Pakistan and Iraq yesterday, while in other parts of the world Iranian exiles took to the streets to celebrate the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
At least 23 protesters were killed in clashes in Pakistan, including 10 in the port of Karachi where security guards at the US consulate fired on demonstrators who breached the outer wall, 11 in the northern city of Skardu where the crowd torched a UN office, and two in Islamabad.
In Iraq, police fired tear gas and stun grenades to scatter hundreds of pro-Iranian protesters who had gathered outside the Green Zone diplomatic compound in the capital Baghdad, where the US embassy is located.
But in Paris, a joyous crowd of thousands turned out to celebrate, waving flags of Iran’s pre-revolutionary monarchy.
Iran’s neighbours to the east and west, Pakistan and Iraq were the scenes of some of the worst unrest from crowds angry at the US-Israeli attacks.
Protesters in Karachi chanted “Death to America! Death to Israel!” at the consulate, where Reuters reporters 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.
The US Embassy in Islamabad said in a post on X it was monitoring reports of demonstrations and advised US citizens to observe good personal security practices.
Thirty-four people were injured, police said. Karachi’s Civil Hospital said all those killed and injured were hit with gunshots.
Protesters also took to the streets in other parts of Pakistan, carrying black flags and chanting “Down with America!” and anti-Israel slogans. In the central city of Lahore, police said hundreds gathered outside the US consulate. In the capital Islamabad, all roads leading to the Red Zone, which houses diplomatic missions were blocked to traffic, police said. Police fired tear gas and live bullets when thousands of protesters tried to march toward the diplomatic enclave, killing two and injuring nearly 10, two officials said on condition of anonymity.
In Western countries and other areas with large populations of Iranian exiles, many came out to celebrate. In the crowd in Paris, some people held aloft portraits of loved ones killed under decades of Iran’s clerical rule. Others waved flags of Israel, the US and France.
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