LONDON — The father of a 15-year-old Pakistani girl shot in the head by the Taliban described his daughter’s survival and ongoing recovery as miraculous Friday and said her shooting was a turning point for Pakistan.
Malala Yousufzai is recovering at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, where she was flown for treatment and protection from Taliban threats after she was shot Oct. 9 in northwestern Pakistan.
The Islamist militants say they are targeting Malala, who had gained international recognition for advocating for girls’ education, because she promoted so-called Western thinking and secularism.
Her father, Ziauddin, mother and two brothers were reunited with her Thursday night after flying to Britain.
Ziauddin Yousufzai said he initially feared he would need to prepare for his daughter’s funeral and that her status now is “a miracle for us.”
“When she fell, the world stood,” Ziauddin Yousufzai said. “She will rise again; she will stand again. She can stand now.”
