Iran Blowback: At Least 22 Killed Trying To Storm US Consulate In Pakistan

Mass anti-American protests have broken out in areas of the Middle East especially with large Shia Muslim populations. This is happening in parts of Pakistan, but also across Iraq – given the majority of Iraq is Shia, and shares deep sympathies with the Iranian religious establishment.

The blowback to the Trump-ordered attacks on Iran has begun, especially in Pakistan, where at least 22 were killed after rioters tried to storm the US consulate in the Pakistani city of Karachi. 

Large protests broke out almost immediately after headlines hit of the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Pakistan is of course Sunni-dominated, however anti-Washington sentiment runs deep across all sectors of society. A historically persecuted Shia minority in the country is disenfranchised but still very visible.

Security forces reportedly opened fire to scatter the protesters as they tried to breach the US compound. It’s unclear if the US Marine guard was involved in any of this firing; instead, more likely it was local Pakistani police and security services which did the killing:

Violent clashes between protesters and security forces in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi and in the country’s north left at least 22 people dead and more than 120 others injured as demonstrators supportive of the Iranian government attempted to storm a U.S. Consulate on Sunday, authorities said.

Hundreds of Pakistanis were reportedly involved, and local health authorities said that at least nine bodies of the slain were brought to Karachi’s civil hospital, confirming the deaths.

Locals protesting stikes on Iran have stormed the entrance area of the US Consulate in Karachi, Pakistan. pic.twitter.com/fiqSoRRpPt

— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) March 1, 2026

“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,” Al Jazeera reports of an array of videos from the scene.

Surreal footage: Marines may have fired weapons once the group breached perimeters… Some Pakistanis were armed and firing…

🚨 BREAKING: Armed rioters breached SEVERAL layers of the security perimeter at the U.S. Consulate in Pakistan in an attempt to take it over

U.S. Marines can be seen OPENING FIRE on rioters who breached our consulate, kiIIing 22.

FAFO! 🇺🇸 🔥 pic.twitter.com/axhrtD6gvN

— J – Gil (@JGIL_24) March 1, 2026

Other parts of Pakistan have seen violence directed at Western and global institutions amid outrage over the US-Israeli military operation:

Protesters set fire to a United Nations ⁠office building in Pakistan’s northern city of Skardu, ⁠in the Shia-majority Gilgit Baltistan (GB) 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.

Reports of a second US consulate attacked in Pakistan…

🚨 🇵🇰 Second US consulate in Pakistan. Lahore. Stormed.

First Karachi. Now Lahore. The fire is spreading.

Every flag. Every symbol. All targets now. pic.twitter.com/5e6lOHhPk9

— New Direction AFRICA (@Its_ereko) March 1, 2026

Things are also popping off outside high-secured Baghdad’s Green Zone, where Iraqis are trying to breach the US embassy, with hundreds seen rioting and even bringing bulldozing equipment to the site. The mob threw stones and clashed with Iraqi security forces, which responded with tear gas.

More footage from Karachi…

BREAKING: At least six killed and a further eight injured as Shiite Muslim protesters storm U.S. consulate in Pakistan, according to authorities.https://t.co/fIrJ27zP9R

📺 Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233 and YouTube pic.twitter.com/EYVZBLpGdh

— Sky News (@SkyNews) March 1, 2026

“Their attempts had been thwarted so far, but they keep trying,” an official told AFP. Iraq is a Shia majority country with heavy loyalty to the Shia religious establishment in Iran. 

Baghdad’s general pro-Iran stance and influence is a legacy of the Bush Neocons, who overthrow Sunni secular Baath dictator Saddam Hussein and elevated the Shia Mullahs, in the wake of the 2003 invasions and desperate efforts to occupy and stabilize the country.

Iraqi youth attack the US embassy in Baghdadpic.twitter.com/xfQyYxWWW5

— Ahmed Hassan 🇾🇪 أحمد حسن زيد (@Ahmed_hassan_za) March 1, 2026

There will likely be more such unrest to come, given Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday urged Iranians and Shia Muslims generally to strike out in revenge. He called revenge a “legitimate right and duty” after Khamenei had been murdered by the “most wicked villains in the world” – in reference to the US and Israel.