From assassination bid in Pakistan to Nobel prize: Look at Malala Yousafzai's inspiring journey

On October 9, 2012, while on a bus in the Swat District, 15-year-old Malala and two other girls were shot by a Tehrik-i Taliban Pakistan gunman in an assassination attempt in retaliation for her activism. She was wounded but survived after she was treated in the UK where she was later granted asylum.

After her recovery, Malala became a prominent activist for the right to education. Based in Birmingham, she co-founded the Malala Fund, a non-profit organisation. In 2012, she received Pakistan's first National Youth Peace Prize and the 2013 Sakharov Prize. in 2013, she co-authored I Am Malala, an international best seller.

In 2014, the 17-year-old was the co-recipient of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize, with India's Kailash Satyarthi. She became the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate.

Yousafzai completed her secondary school education at Edgbaston High School, Birmingham in England from 2013 to 2017. From there she won a place at Oxford University and undertook three years of study for a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE), as an undergraduate at Lady Margaret Hall, a college of the university. She graduated in 2020. In February 2020, climate change activist Greta Thunberg travelled to Oxford University to meet Yousafzai.

On Malala's 16th birthday on July 12, 2013, she spoke at the UN to call for worldwide access to education. The UN dubbed the event "Malala Day". Yousafzai wore one of Benazir Bhutto's shawls to the UN. It was her first public speech since the attack, leading the first-ever Youth Takeover of the UN, with an audience of over 500 young education advocates from around the world.

Pakistani activist and Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai got married in a small nikkah ceremony in the UK on Tuesday, November 9, 2021. The women’s education activist shared the news on Twitter along with photographs of the small ceremony in Birmingham.

Breaking the news to her followers, Yousafzai wrote in her tweet, “Today marks a precious day in my life. Asser and I tied the knot to be partners for life. We celebrated a small nikkah ceremony at home in Birmingham with our families. Please send us your prayers. We are excited to walk together for the journey ahead.”

Photos: Malala Twitter/File pics