Malala Yousafzai

As a female doctor from Pakistan, I am disgusted by the attempted assassination of 14-year-old Malala Yousafzai [" The Taliban's terror ," editorial, Oct. 11]. To me, the attack on this Pakistani girl was actually directed at the legacy of the prophet Muhammad, who declared, "Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim man and woman," and added, "Seek knowledge even if you have to go to China. " Ayesha, the prophet's wife, was a learned woman who imparted knowledge to men and women.

OKLAHOMA CITY — A Pakistani human rights activist who founded an all-girls school said the Taliban was "more afraid of the books than bombs" as he and his 15-year-old daughter, who survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban late last year, were honored Monday at the memorial for Oklahoma City bombing victims. Ziauddin Yousafzai decried political violence during a ceremony held to honor him and his daughter, Malala Yousafzai, who has been recovering in Great Britain since the...

MINGORA, Pakistan — Under a portrait of Sir Isaac Newton, the ninth-grade girls clasped their chemistry texts, smoothed their white head scarves and movingly voiced support for the cause of their classmate, Malala Yousafzai, shot in the head by the Taliban last week because she advocated a girl's right to attend school. "In our hearts is the thirst for education," one 14-year-old told reporters brought to her classroom by the Pakistani military's public relations wing Monday. "We want to show the world that...

Two Feb. 4 headlines represented an eloquent, if unintended, condemnation of our feckless Afghanistan policy. " Restarting talks with Taliban is key to U.S. exit " shared Page A8 with " Girl shot by Taliban is stable after surgeries " — an update on Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl shot in the head by the Taliban for having the temerity to seek an education. A country, like an individual, should be known by the company it keeps. John Scott Williams, Fairfax Station

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A 14-year-old Pakistani student who won international acclaim for speaking out for girls barred from school by the Taliban was critically wounded Tuesday by a gunman who boarded her school bus, asked for her by name, aimed his pistol at her head and fired, officials said. The Pakistani Taliban asserted responsibility for the attack on ninth-grader Malala Yousafzai, who gained notice in early 2009 when she wrote a diary about Taliban atrocities under a pen name for the BBC's Urdu...

There has been much controversy about the ad being displayed in Metro stations and other cities that calls jihadis "savages" [ "Metro urged to donate ad revenue," Metro, Oct. 16]. The courageous and forthright condemnation by Pakistani clerics and laypeople of the shooting of 14-year-old activist Malala Yousafzai clearly establishes that jihadis cannot be equated with Muslims, and the ad does not do that. At the same time, the shooting of the brave and idealistic teenager and the jihadis' threat to...

Two Feb. 4 headlines represented an eloquent, if unintended, condemnation of our feckless Afghanistan policy. " Restarting talks with Taliban is key to U.S. exit " shared Page A8 with " Girl shot by Taliban is stable after surgeries " — an update on Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl shot in the head by the Taliban for having the temerity to seek an education. A country, like an individual, should be known by the company it keeps. John Scott Williams, Fairfax Station

On Tuesday afternoon, Malala Yousafzai was a 14-year-old girl riding home on a school bus. Now, after a masked gunman apparently boarded her bus, asked for her by name and shot her in the head and neck , she is fighting for her life. Malala was targeted by the Pakistani Taliban because for the past three years she has spoken out for the rights of all girls to become educated. After this despicable shooting , a Taliban spokesman said that his organization considers Malala's crusade for education rights an "obscenity" and...

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A Pakistani schoolgirl fighting for her life after being shot by Taliban gunmen was transferred Thursday from a hospital in a province that is a militant haven to a specialist hospital in the army garrison town of Rawalpindi. Malala Yousafzai, 14, was unconscious and in critical condition after being shot in the head and neck as she left school Tuesday, but doctors said she had moved her arms and legs slightly Wednesday night. Earlier Wednesday, surgeons removed a bullet...

OKLAHOMA CITY — A Pakistani human rights activist who founded an all-girls school said the Taliban was "more afraid of the books than bombs" as he and his 15-year-old daughter, who survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban late last year, were honored Monday at the memorial for Oklahoma City bombing victims. Ziauddin Yousafzai decried political violence during a ceremony held to honor him and his daughter, Malala Yousafzai, who has been recovering in Great Britain...

December Stets was just 18 when several stoic soldiers arrived at her family's door in North Carolina three years ago with a message that demolished her world: Her father, Army Staff Sgt. Mark Stets Jr., 39, had been killed by a car bomb outside a girls school in northwest Pakistan. "I wanted to cry, but I was in shock," said December Stets, who recalled holding her sobbing mother in her arms. In the chaos that follows most such attacks, it is not usually possible to finger those responsible.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — It's a well-known fact in Pakistan that Osama bin Laden died in 2006 and that the U.S. commando raid on his compound in May 2011 was merely a "drama" orchestrated by President Obama to help win reelection. Of course, if that were true, Obama might have waited until after the first presidential debate of the campaign season to fake the al-Qaeda leader's killing. But no matter. Pakistanis love a good conspiracy theory. Some national newspapers and TV cable...

There has been much controversy about the ad being displayed in Metro stations and other cities that calls jihadis "savages" [ "Metro urged to donate ad revenue," Metro, Oct. 16]. The courageous and forthright condemnation by Pakistani clerics and laypeople of the shooting of 14-year-old activist Malala Yousafzai clearly establishes that jihadis cannot be equated with Muslims, and the ad does not do that. At the same time, the shooting of the brave and idealistic teenager and the jihadis' threat to come back and...

MINGORA, Pakistan — Under a portrait of Sir Isaac Newton, the ninth-grade girls clasped their chemistry texts, smoothed their white head scarves and movingly voiced support for the cause of their classmate, Malala Yousafzai, shot in the head by the Taliban last week because she advocated a girl's right to attend school. "In our hearts is the thirst for education," one 14-year-old told reporters brought to her classroom by the Pakistani military's public relations wing Monday. "We want to show the world that...

As a female doctor from Pakistan, I am disgusted by the attempted assassination of 14-year-old Malala Yousafzai [" The Taliban's terror ," editorial, Oct. 11]. To me, the attack on this Pakistani girl was actually directed at the legacy of the prophet Muhammad, who declared, "Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim man and woman," and added, "Seek knowledge even if you have to go to China. " Ayesha, the prophet's wife, was a learned woman who imparted knowledge to men and women.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Islamic clerics across Pakistan appeared to overwhelmingly join in the global condemnation of the Taliban's shooting of a 14-year-old education activist as mosque-goers devoted their Friday prayers to the grievously wounded girl. Friday afternoon services often serve as a barometer of public sentiment in Pakistan and elsewhere in the Muslim world, and with seemingly rare exceptions, many prayer leaders included mention of Malala Yousafzai, who survived an...

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — In a country where militant attacks occur almost daily, the Taliban's attempted assassination of a 14-year-old education rights activist in northwestern Pakistan united Pakistanis from across social divides Wednesday in a remarkable and rare display of collective outrage against extremism. The shooting Tuesday of Malala Yousafzai, who remains in critical condition in a Peshawar military hospital, brought condemnation from conservative clerics, secular politicians, the military...

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — It's a well-known fact in Pakistan that Osama bin Laden died in 2006 and that the U.S. commando raid on his compound in May 2011 was merely a "drama" orchestrated by President Obama to help win reelection. Of course, if that were true, Obama might have waited until after the first presidential debate of the campaign season to fake the al-Qaeda leader's killing. But no matter. Pakistanis love a good conspiracy theory. Some national newspapers and TV cable outlets...

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — A Pakistani schoolgirl fighting for her life after being shot by Taliban gunmen was transferred Thursday from a hospital in a province that is a militant haven to a specialist hospital in the army garrison town of Rawalpindi. Malala Yousafzai, 14, was unconscious and in critical condition after being shot in the head and neck as she left school Tuesday, but doctors said she had moved her arms and legs slightly Wednesday night. Earlier Wednesday, surgeons removed a bullet from...

On Tuesday afternoon, Malala Yousafzai was a 14-year-old girl riding home on a school bus. Now, after a masked gunman apparently boarded her bus, asked for her by name and shot her in the head and neck , she is fighting for her life. Malala was targeted by the Pakistani Taliban because for the past three years she has spoken out for the rights of all girls to become educated. After this despicable shooting , a Taliban spokesman said that his organization considers Malala's crusade for education rights an...