Tehran launches fresh retaliatory attacks as it confirms death of decades-long leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli strikes.
Where things stand
• Supreme leader killed: Iran has confirmed the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after a massive US-Israeli attack that President Donald Trump indicated is aimed at regime change and would continue through the week. The strikes hit targets across the Islamic Republic, with one killing over 100 girls at an elementary school near a military base.
• Retaliatory strikes: Israel says it has carried out a new wave of strikes “in the heart of Tehran,” as Iran unleashes fresh attacks after Khamenei’s killing. Iran has already attacked US military bases, Israel and targets across the region. The conflict has damaged air hubs, rocked densely populated areas and disrupted oil shipments.
• Celebration and condemnation: The contrast of celebrations and mourning highlights deep divides in Iran. Across the US, people took to the streets, with some celebrating and others protesting the strikes on Iran.
*Pro-Iranian protesters killed in Karachi after storming US consulate compound*
Nine protesters angered by the death of Iran’s supreme leader have been killed and 20 others injured after they stormed the heavily fortified US consulate compound in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi, according to local emergency workers.
“Hundreds of people suddenly appeared near the American consulate” and police arrived quickly, said Karachi Police spokesman Rehan Ali.
Yelling heard on some videos posted to social media suggests the protest was motivated by the US-Israel attacks on neighboring Iran.
Videos geolocated by CNN show dozens of protesters breaking through the security barricades and beating the consulate’s windows with sticks, before flames can be seen in the windows. Shots can be heard in at least one video.
It is unclear how the six protesters died but images emerged of bloodied bodies lying on stretchers. CNN has reached out to the US Embassy in Islamabad for comment.
The movement of US government personnel had already been restricted in Karachi, with the consulate releasing a statement Saturday citing the “current regional tensions.”
Shiite Islam is the dominant branch in Iran while its followers form a large minority in Pakistan.
*Why Iran’s strategy of targeting Gulf Arab states could backfire*
The Iranian regime has responded to the US-Israeli attacks by launching missiles and drones at Israel, as well as at civilian targets like hotels and airports in several Middle Eastern countries, most of which host US military bases.
Even Oman, which had mediated talks between the US and Iran last week, said Sunday that its Duqm commercial port was targeted.
The strikes indicate that, for Iran, “everything is on the table,” said Hasan Alhasan, a senior fellow for Middle East policy at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a think-tank.
“There’s a very clear message… that no one is safe, that mediation doesn’t offer protection, and that exchanges of mutual assurances or pledges not to allow airspaces or territories to be used militarily against Iran are ineffective either,” Alhasan told CNN’s Becky Anderson on Sunday.
Iran’s calculus, he said, is to “ratchet up the pain on the Gulf states, in order to compel them to apply pressure on the Trump administration to bring a quick end to the war.”
But this strategy could well backfire, Alhasan said, since it is not clear how much leverage the Gulf states have over the Trump administration.
“It’s quite clear that the US has a mind of its own, and it’s acting in close concert with the Israelis. And I think what Iran’s strategy may end up doing, in fact, is pushing the Gulf states into closer alignment with the US, rather than the other way around,” he said.
What’s more, although the Gulf states all favor de-escalation, mass casualty events could compel them “to start considering options up the escalation ladder,” Alhasan said.
