Three protesters killed in Iraq's Karbala near Iran consulate: medics

Three protesters were shot dead overnight during a demonstration outside the Iranian consulate in Iraq's holy city of Karbala, the head of the forensics department there told AFP on Monday.

Security forces in Karbala fired live ammunition to disperse protesters trying to scale the walls of the consulate in the southern city and torch it.

AFP correspondents witnessed protesters left motionless after suffering gunshot wounds, and the forensic medicine department later confirmed three people died.

More than 250 people have lost their lives since anti-government rallies broke out in Iraq on October 1, but officials have stopped providing casualty numbers.

In Karbala late Sunday, protesters hung Iraqi flags on the concrete blocks surrounding the imposing Iranian consulate and spray-painted "Karbala is free, Iran out, out!" on them.

Others threw rocks or shot fireworks over the walls into the consulate, then set fire to tyres at the gates of the building as police officers looked on.

As the crowds grew, heavy gunfire and volleys of tear gas rang out.

"They're not firing up in the air. They intend to kill, not disperse," said one young protester wearing a medical mask to protect himself from the tear gas.

"They're protecting the Iranian embassy while all we want is a country. Why are they killing their own countrymen for another country?"