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Pakistani Teen in Britain for Medical Care

An ambulance carrying injured Pakistani teenager Malala Yousufzai leaves Birmingham airport, England on Oct. 15, 2012.

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Sharon Behn

October 15, 2012

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — Pakistani teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head last week by the Taliban, has arrived
in Britain, where she was evacuated to receive further medical treatments.

Military officials said Monday 14-year-old Yousafzai flew in a special air ambulance supplied by the United Arab Emirates to a medical center in Birmingham, Britain. Yousafzai, who had been successfully treated by top Pakistani surgeons, needs skull-bone replacement, as well as long-term and intensive neurological rehabilitation, according to a military statement.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, England

-Opened June 16, 2010
-Has major trauma center
-Specializes in complex cases, head and gunshot wounds
-Has treated hundreds of soldiers wounded in Afghanistan
-Noted for Surgical Reconstruction expertise
-Houses Britain's Royal Centre for Defense Medicine

The teenager was shot last week for her outspoken support of girls’ education and her criticism of the militant network. Yousafzai began speaking out against the Taliban in when she was an 11-year-old living under brutal Taliban rule in Pakistan’s Swat valley.

Political and religious leaders and thousands of others across Pakistan have come out in support of the Muslim schoolgirl. She defied Taliban death threats for years, although few have marched against the Taliban.

Analyst Rasul Bakhsh Rais said that is because even political leaders fear Taliban reprisals.

An ambulance crew and their police escort await the arrival of an air ambulance carrying 14-year-old injured Pakistani girl, Malala Yousufzai, at Birmingham International airport in central England October 15, 2012.
The plane carrying Malala Yousufzai, the Pakistani girl shot in the head by Taliban gunmen, arrives at Birmingham airport, England October, 15, 2012.
The ambulance carrying Malala Yousufzai leaves Birmingham airport, England, Oct. 15, 2012.
An ambulance transfers Malala Yousafzai upon her arrival in Birmingham, central England on October 15, 2012.
Malala Yousufzai is brought out of a hospital on a stretcher in Rawalpindi before being flown to the United Kingdom for medical treatment.
Nepalese students take part in a candlelight vigil to express their support for Malala Yousafzai, depicted in photograph at left, in Katmandu, Nepal, October 15, 2012.
Pakistani students sing as they hold pictures of Malala Yousufzai during a tribute at the Pakistani Embassy in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, October 15, 2012.
Pakistani schoolgirls pray for the recovery of Malala Yousufzai at their school yard in Gujranwala, Pakistan, October 15, 2012.
A supporter of Pakistani political party Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), reacts while holding a poster of Malala Yousufzai during a rally to condemn the attack in Karachi, Pakistan, October 14, 2012.
Supporters of Pakistani political party Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), attend a rally to condemn the attack on Malala Yousufzai, Karachi, Pakistan, October 14, 2012.
Pakistani Christians pray for the recovery of Malala Yousufzai at the Sacred Heart Cathedral Church in Lahore, Pakistan, October 14, 2012.
Women supporters of Pakistan Sunni Tehreek protest to condemn the attack on Malala Yousufzai, Islamabad, Pakistan, October 14, 2012.
Pakistani students pray for the recovery of Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by the Taliban for speaking out in support of education for women, in Peshawar, Pakistan, October 12, 2012.
Teachers recite verses from the Koran as they pray for the recovery of Malala Yousufzai, Peshawar, Pakistan, October 12, 2012.
Pakistani girls display a poster while sitting at their desk, as their teacher, not shown, talks to them about Malala Yousafzai, Islamabad, Pakistan, October 12, 2012.
Pakistani worshippers pray for the recovery of Malala Yousafzai during Friday prayers in a Mosque in Karachi, Pakistan, October 12, 2012.
Women hold candles during a rally condemning the attack on Malala Yousafzai, Karachi, Pakistan, October 11, 2012.
A student holds a placard with a picture of schoolgirl Malala Yousufzai.

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“They seem to be scared, fearful of revenge and targeted reaction against themselves, against their children, against their families, against their supporters, so I think it is a kind of defensive political move that they have, and that is unfortunate,” said Rais.

Malala Yousufzai is seen in Swat Valley, northwest Pakistan, in this undated file photo.

Some political and religious opposition leaders who are facing national elections, perhaps as early as March 2013, have seized on the public outrage over the shooting to further their platforms.

Right-wing religious leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman of the the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party told local news media conservative religious rule is the only way law and order would be established in the country. Others have drawn parallels between the attack on Yousafzai with U.S.-led drone attacks against militants in the country’s northwest that have also killed civilians.

But former Pakistan ambassador to the United States, Maleeha Lodhi, said unified public revulsion at the violence has given the government an opportunity to act.

“The responsibility now lies with the federal government. It is hard for me to second guess what they will do," said Lodhi. "But if this government cowers in front of this threat, then I think the people of Pakistan will hold them responsible for any further violence that takes place, because this also is a moment of opportunity.”

Taliban and other extremist militants have killed thousands of Pakistani security officers and civilians during the past 10 years. The Taliban said it tried to kill Yousafzai for her pro-Western thinking, and said if the child survives they would target her again.