Aaj Logo

Published 24 Sep, 2022 08:40am

Malala meets PM Shehbaz, expresses concerns over ‘reappearance’ of militants

Malala Yousafzai, the renowned education activist, met with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session on Friday. In a series of tweets after the meeting, she said she had also expressed concerns over the reemergence of banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants in her home town of Swat.

Malala and Pakistan Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb shared the photos and a video of the meeting. The activist was accompanied by her husband Asser Malik and others.

“Today I met with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to discuss the urgent needs of people affected by floods in Pakistan. We are calling on the international community to ease debt pressure and provide immediate humanitarian support,” she tweeted after the meeting.

“The floods destroyed tens of thousands of schools, leaving hundreds of thousands of children without education. Humanitarian aid must include funding for emergency schooling, especially for girls.

“I also shared my concern about the reappearance of Pakistani Taliban in my hometown of Swat Valley & other parts of KP province. Our people cannot face more terrorism & displacement — they need protection. The right to seek justice & live in peace belongs to everyone in Pakistan.

“Finally, I asked the Prime Minister to put more pressure on the Taliban to allow Afghan girls to go to school and women to go to work. Today Afghanistan is the only country where girls are banned from secondary school. Pakistan must stand for women’s rights and girls’ education.”

PM Shehbaz Sharif did speak about girl’s education in Afghanistan during his UNGA address, saying that Islamabad was pressing the Afghan Taliban on the issue.

However, he also called on the international community to end the isolation of the Kabul regime.

Read Comments