Niaz Ali Khan is a journalist with RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal.
The recent deaths of several women in northwestern Pakistan have put the spotlight on so-called honor killings in the South Asian country. Human rights groups say hundreds of girls and women are killed every year, often by relatives who say they are defending the family’s honor.
Pakistani demonstrators have slammed the government's crackdown on undocumented Afghan nationals. Slogans on some banners warned of the hardships awaiting women and minorities deported to Afghanistan. In October, the Pakistani government ordered undocumented Afghans to leave by the end of the month.
Islamabad's order that all illegal immigrants leave the country has prompted harsh criticism by rights watchdogs and the large Afghan community that has long sought refuge in Pakistan.