Schoolgirl shot by Taliban f lies into UK for treatment
THE schoolgirl shot in the head by the Taliban for demanding education for women arrived in Britain yesterday for medical treatment and is expected to make a ‘good recovery’.
Malala Yousafzai, 14, was flown to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham after militants shot her twice in a ‘barbaric attack’ as she made her way home from lessons.
Last night a spokesman for the specialist hospital – which treats service personnel wounded in Afghanistan – said she was in a stable condition and had a chance of making a good recovery.
But the Pakistani teenager needs ‘prolonged care’ to help her recover from the physical and psychological effects of the attack and it seems likely her treatment will take more than six months. It is unclear whether it will ever be safe enough for Malala, whose name means ‘grief-stricken’, to return home. It is likely she will remain in Britain.
Pakistani security agencies have arrested three brothers of a senior Taliban commander, but the group has vowed to target her again.
They said they attacked her because she was promoting ‘Western thinking’ and secular beliefs.
Foreign Secretary William Hague said yesterday: ‘Malala’s bravery in standing up for the right of all young girls in Pakistan to an education is an example to us all.’
Malala, the winner of numerous peace prizes, was shot in the head and neck as she was being driven home from school in the Swat Valley in north-west Pakistan. The teenager, a passionate advocate of education for girls, became a target after writing an outspoken blog and openly criticising the Taliban regime which controls that area.
Details of Malala’s transfer to the UK emerged as 50 clerics in Pakistan issued a fatwa against the attempt on her life, declaring it ‘unIslamic’. The clerics, from the Sunni Ittehad Council, said: ‘Islam doesn’t prohibit women from getting education. The attackers transgressed the Islamic Hudood [principles].’
Dr Dave Rosser, medical director at the hospital, said: ‘We do unfortunately have very extensive experience of dealing with this sort of traumatic bullet-related injury.
‘We have had patients here who have been seen by 17 specialities in the first 24 hours and that’s part of our unique selling point and why we’re in a good position to deal with this sort of thing.’