Iraq protesters torch Iran consulate in Najaf

in the southern city of Najaf, Iraqi protesters stormed the Iranian consulate and set fire to the building on Wednesday bringing a new level of violence to demonstrations aimed at the downfall of a government backed by Tehran. It was the strongest expression of the anti-Iranian sentiment of Iraqi demonstrators, who have taken to the streets for weeks in Baghdad and the Shi'ite Muslim-majority south - and have been gunned down in their hundreds by Iraqi security forces.

Staff at the consulate had evacuated shortly before demonstrators broke in, police said. There were no immediate reports of casualties. Local authorities imposed a curfew following the incident, state media reported.