Basra, Iraq — A pro‑Iranian mob has stormed the perimeter of the U.S. consulate in Basra, deep in what analysts call “Iran’s backyard”, triggering a fierce clash in which American Marines opened fire on crowds of demonstrators chanting support for the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Hundreds of protesters waving Iranian flags and portraits of Khamenei marched on the heavily fortified compound after a fiery sermon by a local militia‑linked cleric, denouncing U.S.–Israeli strikes on Iran. Witnesses say demonstrators hurled Molotov cocktails, tore down outer fencing and tried to ram the vehicle gate with pickup trucks as smoke and laser pointers obscured security cameras.

According to U.S. officials, Marines first used tear gas, stun grenades and warning shots over the crowd before snipers were ordered to “engage imminent threats” as several men attempted to breach the main entrance with explosives. Iraqi medics report multiple dead and wounded among the protesters; Washington confirms “a limited number of hostile casualties” but says no American personnel were killed.

Tehran’s state media is already branding the incident a “massacre of Khamenei’s mourners,” demanding Baghdad expel U.S. forces and threatening retaliation “on every front where the American flag flies.” Iraq’s government, caught between its largest security partner and powerful Iran‑backed factions, has called for an investigation while quietly flooding Basra with troops.

Analysts warn that gunfire from inside a U.S. consulate at openly pro‑Khamenei crowds is precisely the spark Iran’s hardliners wanted: a made‑for‑TV symbol that can turn local rage into a regional cause — and drag Washington even deeper into a conflict playing out on Iran’s doorstep.