LAHORE: A man shot his wife, their two children, and six of her family members on Monday and then burned the bodies when he set her family’s home on fire in an alleged honor killing in central Pakistan, police said.
Muhammad Ajmal committed the attack as revenge for a suspected affair by his wife Kiran, said Imran Mehmood, a District Police Officer for the city of Multan, where the killings occurred. Ajmal returned to Pakistan from Saudi Arabia, where he worked as a tailor, 25 days ago intending to carry out the killings, he said.
Mehmood said Ajmal confessed to the killings.
“This is clearly an honor killing. He saw a picture of his wife with another man and believed she was having an affair,” Mehmood said. “He does not repent his actions.”
In addition to killing his wife and their two children, Ajmal also killed his three sisters-in-law, two of their children, and his mother-in-law.
Ajmal and his father, who was with him at the time of the murder, are both in custody and have been charged with murder, Mehmood said. Police are searching for his brother, who is also believed to be involved.
The deaths add to the hundreds of women and girls killed in Pakistan each year, according to human rights groups, by family members angered at the perceived damage to their honor, which may involve eloping, fraternizing with men or any infringement of conservative values regarding women.
Kiran’s brother Ali Raza told Reuters that Ajmal and his sister were having marital problems and she had recently moved back to Pakistan and was living with her family.
“I am left with just my father, my whole family is gone,” he said.
Mehmood said Ajmal has not been assigned an attorney yet and Reuters was unable to contact any of his family members for a comment.
Pakistan adopted legislation against honor killings in 2016, introducing tough punishment and closing a legal loophole that allowed killers to walk free if pardoned by family members.
Police in Pakistan’s most populous province of Punjab, where honor crimes have been rampant, said recently that the number of such killings had fallen since the law was introduced but rights groups estimate that nearly 1,000 such killings take place annually.
Pakistani man kills wife, two children, six others in alleged honor killing
Pakistani man kills wife, two children, six others in alleged honor killing
- The deaths add to hundreds of honor killing cases reported each year
- Pakistan adopted legislation against honor killings in 2016, closing legal lacunae and introducing tough punishment
Pakistan forms committee to negotiate financial advisory services for Islamabad airport privatization
- Committee to engage Asian Development Bank to negotiate terms of financial advisory services agreement, says privatization ministry
- Inaugurated in 2018, Islamabad airport has faced criticism over construction delays, poor facilities and operational inefficiencies
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Privatization Ministry announced on Wednesday that it has formed a committee to engage the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to negotiate a potential financial advisory services agreement for the privatization of Islamabad International Airport.
The Islamabad International Airport, inaugurated in 2018 at a cost of over $1 billion, has faced criticism over construction delays, poor facilities, and operational inefficiencies.
The Negotiation Committee formed by the Privatization Commission will engage with the ADB to negotiate the terms of a potential Financial Advisory Services Agreement (FASA) for the airport’s privatization, the ministry said.
“The Negotiation Committee has been mandated to undertake negotiations and submit its recommendations to the Board for consideration and approval, in line with the applicable regulatory framework,” the Privatization Ministry said in a statement.
The ministry said Islamabad airport operations will be outsourced under a concession model through an open and competitive process to enhance its operational efficiency and improve service delivery standards.
Pakistan has recently sought to privatize or outsource management of several state-run enterprises under conditions agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as part of a $7 billion bailout approved in September last year.
Islamabad hopes outsourcing airport operations will bring operational expertise, enhance passenger experience and restore confidence in the aviation sector.
In December 2025, Pakistan’s government successfully privatized its national flag carrier Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), selling 75 percent of its stakes to a consortium led by the Arif Habib Group.
The group secured a 75 percent stake in the PIA for Rs135 billion ($482 million) after several rounds of bidding, valuing the airline at Rs180 billion ($643 million).
Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said this week the government has handed over 26 state-owned enterprises to the Privatization Commission.
