Police fired tear gas and protesters pelted stones in Karachi on Sunday evening during a rally that was part of nationwide protests condemning Israel’s killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and its ongoing bombing campaign in Lebanon.

Thousands of people protested across Pakistan after Hezbollah confirmed on Saturday that its longtime chief had been killed by an Israeli air strike in Lebanon, according to AFP.

Tel Aviv said it conducted an airstrike in Beirut’s southern suburbs a day earlier in what would be a devastating blow to the group as it reels from an escalating campaign of Israeli attacks.

In Karachi, a large number of protesters, including women and children, attended the rally denouncing the Hezbollah chief’s killing, raising slogans against Israel and its long-time ally, the United States.

Karachi Police said in a statement that the religiopolitical party, Majlis Wahdat Muslimeen (MWM), organised the rally in the metropolis.

“[The rally] was going to start at PIDC intersection, before moving towards Mai Kolachi Road via the ICI Bridge before culminating at the US Consulate,” the statement said.

According to the police, several protesters began their rally from the Old Numaish roundabout and marched along the main MA Jinnah Road. When they descended from the Native Jetty Bridge and attempted to approach the consulate, police contingents stationed there prevented them from moving further.

The police had already set up containers and created temporary barriers on MT Khan Road and Mai Kolachi Road leading toward the consulate. However, protesters tried removing the obstacles which led to the clashes.

Footage on social media showed clouds of tear gas and protesters congregating near Bahria Complex on MT Khan Road, west of the consulate, waving Hezbollah flags and chanting slogans. Protesters were also seen throwing stones at police clad in riot gear.

Deputy Inspector General (DIG) South Asad Raza told Dawn.com that several officers, including station house officer (SHO) Mouchko, were injured after protesters pelted stones at the police.

Meanwhile, a journalists’ organisation, Crime Reporters’ Association, said in a statement that some reporters covering the incident were beaten and injured, allegedly by the protesters. It added that DSNG vans belonging to a few private news channels were also damaged.

“An understanding had been reached with the protestors to hold a peaceful demonstration, while the police had offered to facilitate a meeting between some rally leaders and a representative from the US Consulate,” said DIG Raza.

“However, the protestors violated this understanding and damaged the containers put near the US Consulate and tried to proceed further,” he said.

The DIG added that aside from pelting stones at the police, some protestors also allegedly resorted to aerial firing, which compelled the law enforcers to take action.

“The police resorted to tear gas shelling to disperse them,” said the DIG.

He admitted that “some arrests” were made but those detained were released after successful negotiations with the protest organisers as they ended their demonstrations.

Sindh Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar took notice of the incident and sought details from DIG South.

“Civilians, including journalists, should be rescued and more police should be deployed to stop the rioting and stone pelting,” the minister said in a statement on X.

“All possible steps should be taken to establish the rule of law and protect the life and property of citizens.”

Police response ‘shameful’

MWM Sindh’s information department released a statement outlining the purpose of the rally and condemning the police response, calling it “shameful”.

“On the martyrdom of Hezbollah chief … Nasrallah, religious parties organised a rally … to the American Embassy and also staged a sit-in,” the statement read.

It added that during the rally, MWM leader Syed Baqir Zaidi delivered a speech, stating, “Hassan Nasrallah played a crucial role in making Hezbollah the strongest Palestinian resistance group.

“The American embassies in different countries of the world are the bases of sedition and corruption,” the statement quoted Zaidi as saying.

He, per the statement, demanded that the embassy “should be abolished from Pakistan” and the “American ambassadors be deported.”

“Police shelling of the rally held in mourning for his [Nasrallah’s] martyrdom is shameful. The Sindh government has made it clear that it stands with America and Israel instead of the victims of Gaza.”

JI Senator arrested during Islamabad protest

Protests also took place in Islamabad, and according to AFP, around 4,000 people gathered in the capital to protest Nasrallah’s killing.

During one of the protests, former senator Mushtaq Ahmed of the Jamaat-i-Islami, his wife, and 10 protesters were arrested while demonstrating outside the Islamabad Press Club.

Sitting in the back of a police vehicle, the ex-Senator claimed that authorities had attacked the demonstrators.

“They attacked us, including women and children,” he said in a video posted on X.

“Now they are arresting us,” he added, accusing the government of being an “arm of Israel”.

Protests in the capital continued despite the Punjab government imposing Section 144 in the province from September 28-29.

Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is a legal provision that empowers district administrations to prohibit an assembly of four or more people in an area for a limited period.

Israel’s ‘reckless act’

Pakistan on Sunday condemned Israeli “adventurism” in the Middle East region, terming the killing of Nasrallah in Lebanon a “reckless act”, constituting a major escalation.

“Pakistan strongly condemns the growing Israeli adventurism in the Middle East. Its unbridled attacks on civilian populations and disregard of international law have reached alarming levels,” a statement released by the Foreign Office read.