United States Marines opened fire on demonstrators during the storming of the Karachi consulate over the weekend, two US officials said on Monday — a rare use of force at a diplomatic post that could sharply escalate tensions in the country amid widespread protests over the assassination of Iran’s leader.

On Sunday, 11 people were killed when protesters breached the compound’s outer wall after Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was assassinated in strikes on Iran.

Citing initial information, the two US officials said it was unclear whether rounds fired by Marines struck or killed anyone. They also did not know whether shots were also fired by others protecting the mission, including private security guards and local police.

This would mark the first confirmation by US officials that Marines were involved in firing at the protestors.

A Sindh government spokesman, Sukhdev Assardas Hemnani, said “security” personnel had opened fire, without specifying their affiliation.

Daily security operations at US diplomatic missions are often carried out by private contractors and local forces, and the involvement of Marines in the incident underscores how seriously the consulate viewed the threat.

Protesters on Sunday chanted “Death to America! Death to Israel!” outside the consulate, where Reuters reporters heard gunfire and saw tear gas fired in surrounding streets.

A video on social media appeared to show at least one protester firing a weapon toward the consulate and bloodied demonstrators fleeing as shots rang out.

A Karachi police official told Reuters that the shots were fired from inside the consulate premises.

The US Marines referred questions to the US military, which in turn referred questions to the State Department. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment.

Fact-finding report incident ‘expected in 15 days’

Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon has said that a high-powered joint investigation team (JIT) has been constituted to investigate the incident at the US Consulate in Karachi in which 10 people were killed.

In comments to Geo News, he said that a fact-finding report was “expected in 15 days” and that once it’s done, one would be able to tell “exactly how this happened and whose bullets hit whom”.

Memon noted that different CCTV footage showed that some of the people at the site had also been carrying weapons, but added that he was “not a technical expert” and that the technical experts were the investigation teams and police who were present at the scene.

Sunseqeuntly, the Sindh Home Department constituted the JIT comprising senior police officers for investigating the incident, according to a notification issued by Addl. Chief Secretary Home, Muhammad Iqbal Memon.

The JIT will be led byCounter Terrorism Department Additional Inspector General Zulfiqar Ali Larik. According to its terms of reference, the committee will ascertain the facts and circumstances surrounding the incident, identify lapses in security and compliance, examine the role of the police and external elements involved, and recommend immediate remedial measures.

‘We will be known for strength’

Vic Mellor, a Republican candidate for Rhode Island, said on X that “armed rioters tried to storm our US Consulate in Karachi, Pakistan”.

“They breached the perimeter. They set fires. They thought this was 1979. It’s not,” Mellor, a US Marine veteran, added.

“United States Marines met them at the door — and sent a message the entire world just heard: The days of America not defending itself are OVER,” he wrote.

Mellor further said, “We will be known for strength. And anyone who wishes to harm Americans will learn the cost. As a Marine, I’ll tell you what every Marine already knows: you don’t touch American soil. Not in Karachi. Not anywhere on earth.”

On Monday, large gatherings were banned across Punjab, Islamabad and Karachi after protests over the strikes on Iran spread, with 26 people reported dead across the country.

Police have registered a case against “unidentified 150-200 protesters” for vandalising the US Consulate building and resorting to firing and arson.

A second first information report (FIR) has been lodged against unknown persons for setting a police post on fire and arson near the consulate.

The third FIR, which pertained to violence on the Native Jetty Bridge, was also lodged against “unknown armed men” who resorted to firing, causing bullet injuries to two women and injuries to others.

Religious community leaders have called for more protests in Lahore and Karachi despite the nationwide ban on public gatherings.

The US embassy in Pakistan is in Islamabad, and there are two additional consulates in Peshawar and Lahore.

Roads leading to the US Consulate in Karachi have been blocked off since Sunday, with a heavy police presence in the area. Similar measures were in place around US missions in Lahore and Islamabad.