"Any
female that, by any means, plays a role in the war against the
mujahedeen," Ehsan declared,
"should be killed."
Five days ago, a fourteen-year-old girl was shot in the head and neck while riding in a school bus. She is currently fighting for her life in a military hospital in Pakistan.The shooters? The mujahedeen. Her offense? Blogging about her right, and the right of all girls, to attend school. Malala Yousafzai has been blogging since the age of eleven when she began to journal her personal struggle to get an education. Her diary was published by the BBC after the Taliban announced that girls will not be allowed to attend school and declared the education of girls to be "un-Islamic." The ban affected Malala's schooling in Swat Valley, Pakistan.
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| Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani teenager shot by the Taliban after advocating education for girls, is treated by army doctors. Photograph: Ispr Handout/EPA |
The mujahedeen are Islamic guerilla warriors belonging to a radical movement that dates back to the mid-1800s, originating in the remote mountains of Afghanistan. They believe they are engaged in a battle of faith, or jihad, a holy war. Although the Taliban was forced out of Swat in 2009, they have publicly admitted responsibility for the shooting, in what most believe is an attempt to announce their continued presence and commitment to violence in their barbaric war against women.
In the United States, a geographical location that ends or begins in 'valley' typically conjures up images of skiing, wealth, and social status. The Swat Valley, where Malala lives, used to boast about being Pakistan's only ski resort, but it is now one of the most violent regions in Pakistan due to the irrepressible influence of the Taliban. Mujahedeen militants continue to spill over from the Afghanistan border and, as evidenced by Tuesday's cold-blooded shooting, are intent upon enforcing their Islamic fundamentalism upon the women of Pakistan.
Malala, a remarkably brave girl, now joins the rank of women who, in their heroic attempt to bring about change for womankind, have fallen victim to cowards.
