Shooting of Pakistan girl activist sparks outrage

Doctors remove bullet from 14-year-old Pakistani girl activist

ISLAMABAD — Schools shut their doors in protest and Pakistanis across the country held vigils yesterday to pray for a 14-year-old girl who was shot by a Taliban gunman after daring to advocate education for girls and criticize the militant group.

The shooting of Malala Yousufzai on Tuesday in Swat Valley, Mingora horrified Pakistanis across the religious, political and ethnic spectrum.

Many in the country hoped the attack and the outrage it has sparked will be a turning point in Pakistan’s long-running battle against the Taliban, which still enjoys considerable public support for fighting US forces in neighboring Afghanistan.

Top US officials condemned the attack and offered to help the girl.

A Taliban gunman walked up to a bus taking children home from school and shot Malala in the head and neck. Another girl on the bus was also wounded.

Malala appeared to be out of immediate danger after doctors operated on her yesterday to remove a bullet lodged in her neck.

But she remained in intensive care at a hospital in Peshawar City, and Pakistan’s interior minister said the next 48 hours would be crucial.

Small rallies and prayer sessions were held for her in Mingora, Lahore City.

In newspapers, on TV and in social media forums, Pakistanis voiced their disgust with the attack, and expressed their admiration for a girl who spoke out against the Taliban when few dared.

Even the country’s top military officer — a man who rarely makes public statements — condemned the shooting and visited the Peshawar hospital to check on the teenager.

“In attacking Malala, the terrorist have failed to grasp that she is not only an individual, but an icon of courage and hope who vindicates the great sacrifices that the people of Swat and the nation gave, for wresting the valley from the scourge of terrorism,” Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani said.

US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton praised the young Pakistani girl.

“She was attacked and shot by extremists who don’t want girls to have an education and don’t want girls to speak for themselves, and don’t want girls to become leaders,” she said.

At the United Nations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the attack on Malala, calling it a “heinous and cowardly act.” (AP)

(AP FOTO) PRAYERS FOR MALALA. Supporters of Pakistani political party Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), chant prayers in support of 14-year-old schoolgirl Malala Yousufzai, who was shot on Tuesday by the Taliban for speaking out in support of education for women,...