Express Tribune Editorials 20th August 2026

Not an act of honour

A young woman named Fatima was shot dead on a Karachi road this week and her husband was left in critical condition with six bullet wounds - all because they had married of their own free will. The most frightening part of this story is that it did not make it to mainstream news, did not reach the public, barely even created a stir. For those who are unfamiliar with such tales, this sounds like a fresh horror. But Sindh has been retelling this same story for decades whilst only changing the names.

Karo-kari is not an aberration in this province; it is almost an anticipated risk whenever two consenting adults choose to take an independent decision about their own lives while going against their family's desires. Police records show that as many as 769 people, including 510 women, were killed in the name of honour in Sindh between 2014 and 2019 - only five years. This means that almost 13 people were killed every single month for five years straight, all in the name of a socially constructed honour that dissipates after just one generation.

What's worse is that the conviction rate for these cases stands at roughly two per cent against an acquittal rate near 21 per cent. These statistics are incriminating evidence of the fact that this practice hasn't been punished enough to fade away. The lack of penalties quite clearly equates to an endorsement. When murderers are able to walk away freely, the legal system has unjustly rid itself of its responsibilities.

Real change needs three things that Sindh has refused to enforce: fast-tracked trials with fixed timelines so that cases cannot be stretched into irrelevance; the prosecution of jirga members who mostly order these killings; and a sustained public campaign in the media, mosques and communities that names karo-kari as murder, not an act of honour.

A digital milestone

Nearly four years after it first registered with the SECP, Google has finally opened its doors in Islamabad. The decision could be a massive boon for Pakistan's digital economy, as local offices open further avenues for investment and cooperation. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif described the opening of the new office as a "stepping stone" towards a long-term partnership, while Google Vice President Wilson White described it as a "big milestone" in the company's engagement with the country. That is notable because Google already has a massive footprint in the country: over the past decade, the company has contributed more than Rs3.9 trillion to economic activity in Pakistan, supporting over 960,000 jobs, according to the Google executive. Those numbers can be expected to grow rapidly thanks to the accessibility of a local office.

Among the benefits of a local Google office is that the company can be more deeply engaged with the country's burgeoning startup ecosystem, directly support local businesses seeking global markets, and also provide the government with input on policymaking based on its abundance of expertise. Google has already pledged to further Pakistan's $30 billion IT export ambition through investments in people, hardware manufacturing and local enterprises. The company is also offering Pakistani students free one-year subscriptions to its Gemini AI assistant.

Critics can fairly argue that opening one office does not make a huge difference when reliable high-speed connectivity and policy consistency both seem like distant dreams. We must also recall that Microsoft shut down its Pakistan liaison office barely a year ago. But the vote of confidence from Google is sure to restore faith, attract at least some investment and generate economic activity that could help resolve the tech sector's biggest problems. Even that low bar would represent a massive opportunity that the government and local entrepreneurs would be wise to tap properly.

The cost of escalation

The quasi-peace, quasi-conflict scenario in the Middle East is getting nasty. In the absence of some shrewd handling of eventualities from the warring sides, escalation is on the rise. It possesses all the potential to break out into a major conflagration. Noticeable developments over the last few days suggest that there is a serious trust deficit, and unverified reports are driving the theatre of warfare. A case in point is the renewed tensions between the UAE and Iran, as well as an emerging standoff between Iran and NATO.

Allegations that Tehran had fired missiles over Abu Dhabi's territorial waters swiftly met with a rejoinder from the Emirates in the form of the complete suspension of trade and financial contacts. Though the Islamic Republic has denied any such misadventure on its part, the clarification was too little and too late. Likewise, NATO's warning that it is prepared to take on Iran and invoke Article 5 of the treaty, if the US or any of the alliance member states is attacked, is a prelude to disaster.

That squarely means there is no medium at work to undertake any damage-control measures. This is where the mediators must come back to work, and the onus is on both Iran and the United States to explicitly make it public that parleys are the way to go, and hold fire forthwith. The minimum that President Trump and Iranian spokespersons, especially the IRGC, could do in the service of peace is to avoid the media platform for airing their reservations and grievances. This is proving to be a trouble-multiplier.

With the 60-day ceasefire framework having lapsed without any breakthrough, there is an urgent need for stock-taking. The good point is that Iran has reiterated its faith in the Islamabad MoU as it called upon the US to abide by it in letter and spirit, if it wants to further any kind of rapprochement. That has, in a way, laid down a blueprint for interaction. Tehran and Washington must rest assured that Islamabad is sincere in getting them off the hook. Let's give diplomacy a fresh start.