A 14-year old Pakistani activist who championed education for girls has been shot in the head by a Taliban gunman.The attack on Malala Yousafzai, who became famous for highlighting Taliban atrocities, happened as she sat in a bus preparing to leave the school grounds in Mingora, the main city in the Swat valley which was the scene of intense fighting between the army and the Taliban in 2009.
At least one other girl was also hurt in the attack on Tuesday that a Taliban spokesman, Ehsanullah Ehsan, quickly claimed the group was responsible for.
He said the teenager's work had been an "obscenity" that needed to be stopped: "This was a new chapter of obscenity, and we have to finish this chapter."
Doctors said the gunshot wounds to her head and neck were serious and that she might have to be moved to a larger hospital in Islamabad or Peshawar.
Fazal Maula Zahid, a member of Swat Qaumi Jirga, a local anti-Taliban group working for peace in the valley, said the gunman had asked which of the girls was Malala.
One of the girls pointed to Malala, but the activist denied it was her. The gunman shot both of the girls.
"An attack on Malala in a highly secured area has sent a shiver down the spine of Swati people," Zahid said.
"It has also created doubts about the claims of the authorities that militants have been flushed out from Swat."
Malala won fame in 2009 during the Pakistani army operations to crush a Taliban insurgency that had taken hold in the Swat valley, an area popular among Pakistani tourists three hours drive from Islamabad.
As part of her campaign for girls' education she wrote an anonymous blog for the BBC about the chaos at the time, including the burning of girls' schools.
Her efforts were recognised by Pakistan's prime minister who awarded her the country's first National Peace award and a reward of around £3,300 after she missed out on winning the International Children's Peace Prize for which she was nominated in 2011.
She had also spoken of her desire to set up her own political party and a vocational institute for marginalised girls in her area.
Read the rest here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/09/pakistan-girl-shot-activism-swat-taliban?CMP=twt_gu
Morons.
"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone'" - David Cameron, UK Prime Minister. 13 May 2015.
According to a tweet by him, he's paying for her treatment and saying how he supports the family.
What cause are u talking about? He should be anti-Taliban?
Why can't he be both anti-drones and anti-Taliban? Anti-drones isnt the "wrong" cause, just maybe not the only thing he should concentrate on.
"How many people find fault in what they're reading and the fault is in their own understanding" Al Mutanabbi
I read an article which (as I remember) said that the pk govt isn't like proper ant-Taliban because it helps them India. They feel threathened by India and its military and the Taliban helps protect them or something like that. So if that is the case, then I'm not sure the Taliban are gna disappear that quickly.
Also it's ambitious and optimistic to think if the Taliban disappear, the drones will to. The drones are killing way more innocent civilians than actual "targets", but America doesn't give a damn. They got rid of the biggest threat yet that wasn't enough for them to leave. They said Saddam Hussain had WMDs, but that was a load of rubbish. They just want to show they are in control and they will continue to do whatever the hell they want, untill someone stops them.
And on a related note (to op), I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but I've seen ads on the Pakistan tv channel 'GEO' which are basically a campaign to get people, especially girls, educated. I think they're great.
"How many people find fault in what they're reading and the fault is in their own understanding" Al Mutanabbi
rest of the story/vid @ http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505263_162-57530331/malala-yousufzais-brain-damaged-in-taliban-attack-in-pakistan-surgeon-says/What a brave girl, mashaAllah! May Allah grant her quick full recovery with no lasting damage to her brain.
"How many people find fault in what they're reading and the fault is in their own understanding" Al Mutanabbi
yep, QE hospital, Bham. Apparently some people got arrested for lying about being her relatives and trying to get to her, but there were no charges.
"How many people find fault in what they're reading and the fault is in their own understanding" Al Mutanabbi
I really feel sorry for this poor child and i hope she does recover and continue to campaign. I fear for her family! If she returns to Pakistan then its ever so likely that she'll receive more death threats and i don't think its a safe place at all. I wonder whether they'll give her the option of living in Britain?
But, there's something which really surprised me. There are many Malala's in this world. They campain for a right to education day in, day out, just like she has. Yet why is it so unnoticed? Israel continues to bomb Palestine and thousands of children are deprived from living in a home, let alone making their way to school and gaining a decent education. In these war-torn nations, why does no one take notice of this? Have they forgotten the Palestinans who want this war to end? Have they forgotten that there must be children- boys and girls who want to be the next President, Doctor, Accountant and Businessman? Why does the media not continue to make this issue as their main headline?
I came up with my own theory. The ONLY reasons they made Malala's incident the frontpage of every website and newspaper, is because 1) Britian are trying to improve its relationship with Pakistan, so supporting Pakistan and offering her immediate support and care will look good on Britain as a whole. 2) It was the TALIBAN that did this. This is one more attempt to show how bad and horrible the Taliban are and what they're doing to young people. Malala just happened to be a recent victim.
I don't know what you've been reading lol.
Don't be so horrible. Your sister is your blood.
Malala already has a real mother.
http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/19/world/europe/uk-pakistani-teen-activist/index.html
On the road to recovery, inshallah.
because moving away (and becoming unnoticed) is so easy for a family...
I heard the pk govt are paying for whatever treatment she gets over here.
And the drones etc aren't being mentioned because of the double standards. They don't want to make themselves look like the savages, now, do they?
"How many people find fault in what they're reading and the fault is in their own understanding" Al Mutanabbi