BREAKING: Several Dead After Armed Mob Storms U.S. Consulate In Pakistan

Multiple people are dead after Pakistani security forces were forced to open fire on a crowd of armed attackers who stormed a U.S. consulate in Pakistan. The attackers managed to breach several layers of security and could be seen firing at U.S. Marines guarding the perimeter.

The incident occurred at the U.S. Consulate General in Karachi, Pakistan when hundreds of protesters gathered in the area and attempted to advance toward the consulate’s security perimeter and gates. The demonstrations — largely comprised of Shiite Muslims and supporters of the Iranian government — formed part of nationwide protests triggered by the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran the previous day.

Demonstrations devolved into a riot when organized attackers began pelting rocks and other projectiles at the consulate’s outer perimeter earlier in the day. Others smashed windows and set fire to a nearby police outpost.

Roads leading to the consulate were closed, and orders restricting gatherings were enforced in related areas, including Islamabad.

Pakistani security forces, primarily police and paramilitary units, responded to contain the situation. Officials stated that forces deployed tear gas, rubber bullets, and batons initially, followed by live ammunition after protesters breached parts of the security cordon and continued to advance.

Senior police official Irfan Baloch noted that protesters briefly attacked the consulate perimeter before being dispersed, with windows smashed but no fire set to the main building itself. Sindh government spokesperson Sukhdew Assardas Hamnani reported that security forces opened fire at the consulate site, according to a report from the Associated Press.

It is unclear whether any U.S. Marines guarding the consulate complex were forced to open fire. Reports indicating that they did fire are circulating online, though the Pakistani government has denied those claims at this time. Video footage from the scene shows at least one armed man firing a handgun towards the consulate while additional gunfire could be heard in the background.

An armed rioter can be seen firing towards the U.S. consulate with a handgun
Photo: Hamza Hami via X

“What we know is that protesters turned violent and tried to break through the security cordon around the consulate and clashed with the police, and some of them were very violent due to which police had to respond accordingly,” Sindh Minister for Interior Ziaul Hasan Langar announced during a press briefing. He added that an inquiry had been launched into the incident and rejected claims of U.S. Marine involvement.

The U,S. Embassy in Islamabad issued a security alert in response to the incident. “We are monitoring reports of ongoing demonstrations at the U.S. Consulates General in Karachi and Lahore, as well as calls for additional demonstrations at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad and U.S. Consulate General Peshawar. U.S. government personnel have been directed to restrict their movements until further notice,” the statement read.

Related protests occurred in Islamabad, where police used tear gas and batons against crowds attempting to march on the U.S. embassy. Similar crowd control actions were deployed in Lahore and Peshawar.

The State Department has advised Americans living in several predominantly Muslim countries to exercise extreme caution amid ongoing military operations in Iran.

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