Several people were killed on Sunday, March 1, 2026, and more than 100 others were injured when violent protests erupted across Pakistan and Iraq following the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S.-Israeli strikes. The most lethal clashes occurred as crowds attempted to storm the American consulate in Karachi, Pakistan.
Security forces fired on demonstrators in Karachi, the nation’s largest city, leaving at least 10 people dead and dozens injured. Protesters smashed the consulate’s windows, set fire to a nearby police post, and briefly breached the outer boundary of the building. The confrontation in the southern port city resulted in nearly half of the day’s total casualties.
Summaiya Syed Tariq, a police surgeon at Karachi’s main government hospital, said six bodies were brought in initially, with four more dying later from severe injuries. Senior police officer Irfan Baloch reported that protesters had momentarily hit the consulate’s external perimeter before being pushed back, denying accusations that any part of the compound had been set on fire.
The turmoil spread throughout Pakistan, where Shiite Muslims comprise about 15 to 20 percent of the 250 million citizens. In the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, an estimated 14 people were killed in confrontations with security forces, according to local authorities. (Different reports give varying numbers.) Demonstrators there attacked offices of the U.N. Military Observer Group and the U.N. Development Programme, torched police posts, and damaged local charity offices before troops intervened and a curfew was enforced.
Two additional deaths occurred in Islamabad as police deployed tear gas and live ammunition to prevent thousands of protesters from reaching the U.S. Embassy. Officials blocked all access routes to the Red Zone, the secure diplomatic district that hosts embassies and government offices.
President Asif Ali Zardari offered condolences to Iran after Khamenei’s death. “Pakistan stands with the Iranian nation in this moment of grief and shares in their loss,” he said in a statement issued by his office.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi called for calm while acknowledging the widespread grief, urging citizens to refrain from taking the law into their own hands and to demonstrate peacefully. He described the day as one of mourning for the Muslim Ummah and for the people of Iran and Pakistan.
The 86-year-old Khamenei had served nearly 37 years as Iran’s Supreme Leader—the longest rule of any contemporary Middle Eastern head of state—and guided the expansion of a network of Iran-backed militias throughout the region. His death deeply affected the Islamic world, especially Shiite communities that viewed him as a spiritual figure.
In Iraq, security forces used tear gas against hundreds of pro-Iran demonstrators who waved flags, hurled stones, and tried to break into Baghdad’s Green Zone, where the U.S. Embassy is located. The unrest came after U.S.-Israeli strikes that killed Khamenei and other leaders, targeting Iran-aligned armed groups across the region.
Thousands also marched in Lahore and Peshawar, where police used tear gas and batons to stop crowds from reaching U.S. consulates. In Multan, a city in Punjab province, demonstrators held a peaceful protest criticizing the United States and Israel. One participant, Mamoona Sherazi, said: “God willing, we will never bow before America and Israel.”
The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said it was monitoring reports of continuing demonstrations at consulates in Karachi and Lahore, along with planned protests at the embassy in Islamabad and the consulate in Peshawar. It advised American citizens to keep up with local news, avoid large gatherings, and stay vigilant.
The Pakistani government strengthened security around the U.S. Embassy and consulates nationwide in response to the unrest. Sindh Province Interior Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar cautioned that authorities would not tolerate chaos, encouraging citizens to voice their views peacefully.
Reactions echoed across the Middle East as well. Tens of thousands of Hezbollah supporters and Shiite Muslims convened in southern Beirut to mourn Khamenei, carrying flags and images of the late leader. Pro-Houthi media in Yemen claimed that a million people joined a march in Sanaa to show solidarity with Iran.
Iran-linked groups—including Hamas, the Houthis, Iraqi militias, and Hezbollah—issued condolence messages. Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s secretary general, praised Khamenei for guiding what Tehran refers to as an “axis of resistance” against U.S. and Israeli influence in the region.
Khamenei’s death follows less than 18 months after Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in a September 2024 airstrike on Beirut, delivering a major setback to Iranian regional influence and marking another symbolic loss for Shiite Muslims who saw both figures as icons of resistance.
