KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — U.S. Embassy officials in Pakistan say all Americans at the U.S. Consulate in Karachi are safe after clashes broke out between protesters and police.
Police say hundreds of Pakistanis protesting an anti-Islam video broke through a barricade and reached the outer wall of the consulate. Police fired tear gas and water cannons at the protesters, while police and private security guards outside the consulate fired shots in the air to disperse the crowd.
A spokesman for the Shiite Muslim group that organized the rally says one protester was killed in the clash.
An official with the main ambulance service in the city confirms one dead protester was taken away along with 18 who were injured.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad says all Americans who work at the consulate are safe.
In the eastern city of Lahore, at least 8,000 people attended a rally where an American flag was burned. Smaller protests were held in other parts of Pakistan.
%@AP Links
052-r-06-(Sound of Pakistani protest leader with bullhorn, denouncing the U.S. over the anti-Islamic video)--Sound of Pakistani protest leader with bullhorn, denouncing the U.S. over the anti-Islamic video. (16 Sep 2012)
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051-r-09-(Sound of demonstrators burning U.S. flag and chanting, during protest over the anti-Islamic film that was made in America)--Sound of demonstrators burning U.S. flag and chanting, during protest over the anti-Islamic film that was made in America. (16 Sep 2012)
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APPHOTO ISL121: A Pakistani protester spray paints on the wall of the U.S. consulate during a demonstration in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, Sept. 16, 2012. Hundreds of Pakistanis protesting an anti-Islam video produced in the United States clashed with police Sunday as they tried to march toward the U.S. Consulate in the southern city of Karachi, while thousands of others held peaceful demonstrations in other parts of the country. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) (16 Sep 2012)
<<APPHOTO ISL121 (09/16/12)>>
APPHOTO ISL122: A Pakistani protester stands beside a police vehicle set on fire by protesters near the U.S. consulate during demonstration in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, Sept. 16, 2012. Hundreds of Pakistanis protesting an anti-Islam video produced in the United States clashed with police Sunday as they tried to march toward the U.S. Consulate in the southern city of Karachi, while thousands of others held peaceful demonstrations in other parts of the country. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan) (16 Sep 2012)
<<APPHOTO ISL122 (09/16/12)>>
