DAWN Editorials 7th September 2026

Unending war

WITH the world’s focus regarding the US-Iran war largely on the conflict’s geopolitical dimensions and its impact on the global economy, the human toll is often overlooked.

On Sept 1, as hostilities once again flared between Washington and Tehran, a wedding party in the Iranian town of Kuhestak, Hormozgan, was struck by a projectile. A night of joy turned into one of terror and tragedy as at least five people, including children, were killed. Several were injured. It is widely believed the US is responsible for this abominable attack; the American vice-president says his country is investigating the incident. The tragedy mirrors the atrocity that occurred at the Minab school at the beginning of the conflict, in which over 150 people — mostly schoolchildren — were massacred, again in an American attack.

These deplorable incidents indicate that the US has no war strategy; precious lives are being lost because a bruised superpower cannot admit that it has failed. The response from the highest office in the US is nonsensical; US President Donald Trump has proposed renaming the Strait of Hormuz the ‘Trump strait’, and has claimed that America’s weapons stock is “virtually unlimited”. The latter claim is particularly difficult to believe, as several sources have said the US is running low on munitions.

Many within the US system realise that dragging the war further is useless; several top American generals have reportedly told their civilian bosses that escalation with Tehran is not advisable. There is apparently great tumult within the Pentagon over the prosecution of the Iran war. Meanwhile, the effects of the conflict are spreading, as the pro-Iran Houthis have clashed with the Yemeni government over control of the strategically important Bab al-Mandeb. A high number of fatalities have been reported in the clashes.

If there are any sane voices within the White House, they must ask their boss to end the Iran war immediately. While it may be humiliating for the US to admit that it failed in bringing Iran to its knees, carrying on with this disastrous war will be an even bigger mistake. American wars against sovereign states have, over the past few decades, rarely ended the way Washington has desired; the current conflict is no exception.

The Islamabad MoU, which the Iranians have expressed their confidence in, remains the best bet towards a negotiated settlement. If the US has a better plan, it is welcome to share it. But threats, bluster and further attacks will take it nowhere, and will drag the region into an even bigger conflict. Mr Trump must end this war of choice immediately, and come to the table with Iran to work out a mutually acceptable long-term peace deal.

Published in Dawn, September 7th, 2026

Export reality

THE FPCCI is rightly concerned over the burgeoning trade deficit that has widened by 18.1pc to $7.1bn in the first two months of the current fiscal year due to growing imports and stagnating exports. The country’s apex trade body has described the rising cost of doing business as a binding constraint on exports. A policy rate above regional rivals, costly and unreliable energy supply, and higher taxes on petrol are structural costs that show up directly in the price of exporters. This explains a good part of why our exports keep losing shelf space to competitors who face none of these burdens. But it is not the whole story. Start with the product mix. Pakistan’s exports have leaned on textiles and apparel for decades, and the composition has barely shifted even as competitors moved up the value chain. Bangladesh, for example, has pushed harder into higher-margin garments and diversified into pharmaceuticals and light engineering. Pakistani exporters, by contrast, have been content to ship yarn, grey cloth and low-end made-ups, and other commodities.

Value addition was always the way out of that trap. But most manufacturers did not opt for it. The market concentration compounds the problem. Exporters that have spent decades selling largely in the same markets have limited leverage when demand softens, and no cushion when a market turns against them. Product and market diversification takes marketing spend, product development and a tolerance for lower margins — costs our industry has generally skipped in favour of the domestic market for higher pricing power and thinner competition. Though understandable for an individual firm, collectively, it has hollowed out the export base. Most exporting companies remain family-run and lack in-house expertise in global marketing, compliance and product design. Modernising means hiring professionals and ceding some control. Few owners have been willing to do this. If borrowing costs are truly the obstacle, the stock market offers a way around them. Equity carries no policy rate. Yet companies show little appetite for listing due to a reluctance to open their books to regulators or share profits outside the family. Most may simply not be investment-grade enough to survive that scrutiny. The export sector needs an overhaul on both ends: a government policy that favours exports, and real diversification, value addition and corporatisation from firms themselves.

Published in Dawn, September 7th, 2026

Online danger

THE digital age contains death traps for children. A new Unicef report reveals a global child exploitation emergency. About 20m internet-using children across 21 countries, including Pakistan, faced online sexual exploitation in a single year; 60pc of reported violations were on digital platforms while 14pc occurred in online gaming. More than one in five children became targets of sexual exploitation; 15m were exposed to sexual images, and 4m had sexual material “shared without permission”. Almost 1.1m reported AI-generated sexual images or videos showing them. Sadly, these numbers are just the tip of the iceberg. Online predators follow a perversion pyramid. Offences begin with chatting and sharing of inappropriate content then assume the form of solicitation, ‘sextortion’, and misuse of AI deepfake technology.

These statistics mean permanently damaged lives. The scale of the crisis is a consequence of keeping the scourge hidden. Victims of tech-facilitated sexual violations are reportedly four times more vulnerable to self-harm, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. As abusers are often known to the victims, voicing these traumas is difficult for reasons of shame and ostracisation. Whether it happens online or offline, the toll of abuse is lifelong. It impedes education, employment and productivity. To keep children from harm, protections to ensure a safe digital space are crucial. Legislation must possess commitment, transparency and precision; enforcement lapses should be punishable. As in the West, there is a need for Pakistan to restrict social media use for under-16-year-olds. But the onus of digital safety lies with the parents. No law can succeed until the authorities and society stop slinking around this grave issue. Totally darkened screens can hamper learning and information. Instead, investment in police training, a cyber-patrol force to track down web criminals, and active encouragement to report dangerous online spaces are vital. While an evolving cyberspace is hard to secure, it cannot be allowed to cripple the young.

Published in Dawn, September 7th, 2026