Malala Yousafzai returns to Pakistan hometown for first time since she was shot

Malala Yousafzai has returned to her hometown in Pakistan, 13 years after she was shot in the head by the Taliban.

The 27-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner shared a picture of herself in the stunning landscape of northern Pakistan on social media, saying it was the first time she had been back there since she was brutally attacked at just 15 years old.

She wrote: “As a child, I spent every holiday in Shangla, Pakistan, playing by the river and sharing meals with my extended family. It was such a joy for me to return there today – after 13 long years – to be surrounded by the mountains, dip my hands in the cold river and laugh with my beloved cousins. This place is very dear to my heart and I hope to return again and again.”

In October 2012, Yousafzai was shot in the head by the Taliban while riding a bus home from school. In the days that followed the shocking attack, the teenager was airlifted to hospital in Birmingham, England for life-saving surgery.

She and her family settled in Britain, where she went on to graduate from Oxford University. She has since devoted her working life to campaigning for educational rights for girls and women around the world under the umbrella of the international non-profit organization the Malala Fund.

“At the college, she addressed the students during a special event. She then visited her grandmother’s grave in the family cemetery. After spending about two and a half hours in Shangla, Malala Yousafzai departed for Islamabad via helicopter. Strict security arrangements were in place throughout her visit.”

In her post on Wednesday, Yousafzai went on to reference the ongoing instability in her country of birth. She wrote: “I pray for peace in every corner of our beautiful country. The recent attacks, including in Bannu yesterday, are heartbreaking. I am sending my condolences to the victims and their families and offer my prayers for the safety of every person in my homeland.”

She was referring to an attack earlier this week in Bannu in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in which at least 12 people were killed.

A group affiliated with the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in the northwestern area of the country in which two suicide bombers breached a wall at a military base, before other attackers stormed the compound.