At least 6 killed as Shiites storm US Consulate in Pakistan over killing of Iran's supreme leader

KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — At least six people were killed and about a dozen were wounded in violent clashes with police and paramilitary forces Sunday after hundreds of protesters stormed the U.S. Consulate in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, authorities said.

APTOPIX Pakistan Iran US Israel

The violence came hours after the United States and Israel attacked Iran and killed the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Police and officials at a hospital in Karachi said at least eight people were also wounded in the clashes.

Summaiya Syed Tariq, a police surgeon at the city's main government hospital, confirmed that six bodies and multiple injured people were brought to the facility. Karachi is the capital of southern Sindh province and Pakistan's largest city.

Senior police official Irfan Baloch said protesters briefly attacked the perimeter of the U.S. Consulate but were later dispersed. "The situation is now fully under our control," Baloch said.

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He dismissed as baseless reports that any part of the consulate building was set on fire. However, he said protesters torched a nearby police post and smashed windows of the consulate before security forces arrived and regained control.

Witnesses said dozens of Shiite protesters remained gathered about a kilometer (half a mile) from the consulate, urging others to join them. Shiites make up roughly 15% of Pakistan's population of about 250 million and represent one of the largest Shiite communities in the world. They have frequently staged anti-Israel and anti-U.S. rallies in the past, though clashes of this scale are rare.

Shiites also held a rally near the U.S. Consulate in Lahore, the capital of eastern Punjab province, police said. Faisal Kamran, a senior police official, said demonstrators tried to protest outside the consulate but were not allowed. Police dispersed the crowd when they tried to march toward the building, he said.

Associated Press writers Babar Dogar in Lahore, Pakistan, and Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, contributed to this story.

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March 01, 2026

At least 6 killed as Shiites storm US Consulate in Pakistan over killing of Iran's supreme leader

KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — At least six people were killed and about a dozen were wounded in violent clashes with police an...

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Protests break out in Pakistan, Iraq over Khamenei's death

KARACHI, Pakistan, March 1 (Reuters) - Pakistani police fired tear gas on Sunday to scatter protesters who breached the outer wall ‌of the U.S. consulate in the southern city of Karachi ‌following news of U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali ​Khamenei.

Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite armed groups gather after the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in Baghdad

Pro-Iranian protesters also gathered outside the Green Zone in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, where the U.S. Embassy is located.

In Karachi, protesters had been pushed back from the consulate, a spokesman for the local government said. A ‌Reuters reporter heard sounds ⁠of gunfire and video footage from the scenes showed burning vehicles outside the consulate's main gate.

No casualties were reported ⁠in the clashes. U.S. diplomats in the consulate were not immediately available for comment.

Large protests also broke out in other parts of Pakistan.

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Protesters set ​fire to ​a United Nations office building in ​Pakistan's northern city of Skardu, ‌in the normally peaceful Shia-majority Gilgit Baltistan 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, adding no casualties had been reported.

Crowds ‌had gathered earlier in the day to ​protest Khamenei's death.

In the central city of ​Lahore, hundreds of protesters gathered ​outside the U.S. consulate but there were no reports ‌of violence.

"Some of the protestors tried ​to damage the ​security gate, hundreds of yards away for the Consulate, however, police stopped them without use of force," Aqeel Raza, an eyewitness, ​told Reuters.

(Reporting by Akhtar ‌Soomro and Ariba Shahid in Karachi, Mushtaq Ali in Peshawar ​and Mubasher Bukhari in Lahore; Writing by Saad Sayeed; Editing ​by Clarence Fernandez and Raju Gopalakrishnan)

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March 01, 2026

Protests break out in Pakistan, Iraq over Khamenei's death

KARACHI, Pakistan, March 1 (Reuters) - Pakistani police fired tear gas on Sunday to scatter protesters who breached the o...

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OPEC+ debates oil output boost as US war on Iran disrupts shipments

By Olesya Astakhova, Alex Lawler and Ahmad Ghaddar

LONDON/MOSCOW, March 1 (Reuters) - OPEC+ will consider a larger-than-expected oil output increase on Sunday, two OPEC+ sources said after ‌the U.S.-Israeli war on OPEC+ member Iran and Tehran's retaliation led to shipment ‌disruptions in the Middle East.

OPEC+ has a history of raising oil output to cushion disruptions but analysts said the ​group currently has very little spare capacity to meaningfully add to supply, except for its leader Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Riyadh has been raising oil production and exports in recent weeks in preparation for U.S. strikes on Iran, sources have told Reuters.

Oil, gas and other shipments ‌from the Middle East via the ⁠Strait of Hormuz have come to a halt since Saturday after shipowners received a warning from Iran saying the area was closed for navigation.

OPEC+ ⁠will debate a production hike of 411,000 barrels per day or more at a meeting on Sunday, sources told Reuters, larger than the original expectations of 137,000 bpd.

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Oil prices jumped on Friday ​to $73 per ​barrel, the highest level since July, on fears ​of a wider conflict in the ‌Middle East and supply disruptions through Hormuz, the world's most important oil route amounting to over 20% of global oil transit.

Middle East leaders have warned Washington that a war on Iran could lead to oil prices jumping to over $100 per barrel, said veteran OPEC analyst Helima Croft from RBC. Analysts from Barclays also said prices could rise to $100.

Croft said the market impact ‌from any large OPEC output increase will be limited ​due to a lack of actual production capabilities outside ​Saudi Arabia.

The meeting on Sunday will ​start at 1100 GMT and will involve only eight members of OPEC+ - ‌Saudi Arabia, Russia, the UAE, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, ​Iraq, Algeria and Oman. ​OPEC+ groups the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies like Russia but most production changes in the past years have been done by the eight members.

The ​eight members raised production quotas ‌by about 2.9 million bpd from April through December 2025, roughly 3% of ​global demand, before pausing increases for January to March 2026 due to seasonal ​weakness.

(Writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

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By Olesya Astakhova, Alex Lawler and Ahmad Ghaddar LONDON/MOSCOW, March 1 (Reuters) - OPEC+ will consider a la...

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Cliff-hanger derby caps Rugby League's return to Las Vegas in pursuit of new American fans

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Rugby league's bid to crack into the U.S. sports market returned to Las Vegas on Saturday with its mission to convert Americans to thisrugged brand of footballdrawing almost 50,000 fans to Allegiant stadium.

Australia National Rugby League US

It's the third consecutive year Australia's National Rugby League has showcased the gritty sport in the entertainment capital.

How many locals showed up among the thousands of traveling fans from Australia and England on a day that saw three matches was not immediately clear, but the showcase delivered on the entertainment stakes capped by a cliffhanger between two historic rivals.

The NRL has committed until 2028 to play regular season matches in Las Vegas as part of a strategic plan to broaden an international audience for the sport and increase its sports betting revenue by playing Prime Time in the entertainment capital.

Australia has been courting the US market since 1987when it played a State of Origin match between New South Wales and Queensland in Long Beach.

Bulldogs in derby win

A field goal in the second period of 'golden point' extra time by Canterbury Bulldogs captain Stephen Crichton decided a brutally physical encounter against the St. George-Illawarra Dragons.

Tied at 14-14 at the end of regulation and with both teams missing chances in the first period of extra time, Crichton stepped up from 20 meters (yards) to nervelessly slot home his kick to give the Bulldogs a dramatic victory.

Crichton had earlier played in winger Jacob Kiraz for Canterbury's second try after Jacob Preston had opened the scoring for Canterbury.

The Dragons twice leveled the match with a rare try by prop Emre Guler, while Setu Tu scored acrobatically in the corner for a try on his NRL debut.

Dragons half Kyle Flanagan kicked a penalty goal in the final minutes of regulation to tie the game and force extra time.

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Knights upset Cowboys

Earlier, the Newcastle Knights stunned the North Queensland Cowboys 28-18 in the NRL season opener.

The match was in the balance at 22-18 in the last 10 minutes, before Braidon Burns was penalized for a high hit on Knights star Kalyn Ponga and was sent to the sin bin by referee Ashley Klein.

Newcastle, which finished bottom of the NRL standings last season, seized on the extra man advantage with prop forward Trey Mooney barging over to seal the win.

Newcastle raced to a 12-0 lead with tries from Greg Marzhew and Fletcher Sharpe, before the Cowboys rallied after Heilum Luki and Murray Taulagi scored to level at 12-12 at half time.

Bradman Best and Dominic Young scored a quickfire double for the Knights after the break before Taulagi's second try narrowed the deficit.

Leeds thump Hull KR

Maika Sivo scored four tries as the Leeds Rhinos thumped Hull KR 56-8 in the first match at Allegiant Stadium on Saturday featuring two English clubs.

The Rhinos stormed to a 28-0 halftime lead. Converted tries to Brodie Croft, Keenan Palasia, Ryan Hall and a double to Sivo set the tone.

Leeds maintained momentum in the second half with former Parramatta Eel Sivo scoring twice more, while Croft added a second try and Cooper Jenkins crashed over twice.

Hull's only reply came through Joe Burgess, a lone consolation after their World Club Challenge win over theBrisbane Broncoslast week.

AP sports:https://apnews.com/sports

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March 01, 2026

Cliff-hanger derby caps Rugby League's return to Las Vegas in pursuit of new American fans

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Knight delivers joke during 'SNL' appearance featuring US men and women hockey gold medal winners

This time it was Hilary Knight's turn to provide a big laugh — with an assist from the "Saturday Night Live" writers — in the wake of a weeklong dust-up involving theUnited States women and men's Olympic gold medal-winning hockey teams.

Knight, the U.S. women's captain, along with teammate Megan Keller and men's team brothers Jack and Quinn Hughes, made a surprise appearance during "Heated Rivalry" star Connor Storrie's opening monologue on "SNL" on Saturday night.

With the Hughes brothers already on stage alongside Storrie, Knight and Keller joined them to a loud and lengthy ovation. The four players wore USA jerseys with their gold medals draped from their necks.

Knight opened by saying: "It was going to be just us, but we thought we'd invite the guys, too."

The remark was a clear reference to a controversy that arose when the men received a congratulatory call from President Donald Trump following their2-1 overtime win against Canadaon Sunday at theMilan Cortina Games.

Addressing the team over a speakerphone, Trump invited the men to his State of the Union speech, before adding he'd have to also invite the women, too. The president later said if he didn't invite the women, he'd risk being impeached, which led to the players laughing at a comment many saw as sexist.

Knight on Wednesdayreferred to the joke as being "distasteful and unfortunate."

Many of the men, meantime, said they laughed while being caught up in the celebration. Boston Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman acknowledged they "should have reacted differently" to Trump's remarks.

The U.S. women, who also beatCanada 2-1 in overtimethree days earlier, politelydeclined Trump's invitation due to travel plans. The players traveled commercially and returned to North America late Monday evening, well after the men, who traveled on a charter flight paid for by the NHL and NHL Players' Association.

Jack Hughes scored the overtime goal for the men.

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Keller scored the overtime goal for the women, with Knight tying the game in the final minutes of regulation.

Knight plays for the PWHL's Seattle Torrent, and made the trip to New York City a day after beingplaced on long-term injured reserve. Keller, who plays for Boston, scrambled to New York hours after playing in the Fleet's 3-2 shootout win at Ottawa earlier in the day.

Jack Hughes plays for the NHL New Jersey Devils, and Quinn for the Minnesota Wild.

Knight delivered another punchline after Quinn Hughes said the last time the men won gold was 46 years ago at the 1980 Lake Placid Games.

Knight followed by saying the women last won in 2018.

Laughing, Jack Hughes responded by saying, "nice burn," before turning to Storrie and saying: "These gold medals aren't just for us, they're for all hockey fans, yours' too."

When Storrie asked if he could try on one of the medals, all four players turned and said, "No."

"Heated Rivalry" has quickly become a hitfollowing its first season onHBO Max. Adapted from Rachel Reid's novel published in 2019, it features a plot revolving around a gay hockey romance in which two players from opposing teams carry out a secret, long-term relationship.

AP Olympic coverage:https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

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March 01, 2026

Knight delivers joke during 'SNL' appearance featuring US men and women hockey gold medal winners

This time it was Hilary Knight's turn to provide a big laugh — with an assist from the "Saturday Night Live...

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