Pakistani Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai has called for the rebuilding of 12 schools which were torched by suspected extremists in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) in an attack on Friday.
In a tweet on Saturday, Malala, who was shot and wounded by the Pakistani Taliban in 2012 for promoting girls’ education, condemned the attack saying, “Extremists have shown what frightens them most, a girl with a book.”
No one was wounded in the attacks early Friday as the buildings were closed at the time. According to a spokesperson of GB government, at least 10 suspects have been arrested after raids in the Tanager and Daryal areas of the region.
Imran Khan, who is expected to become the next prime minister after his party won the most seats in last month’s elections, also condemned the attack on the schools and vowed to improve security once he takes office.
Human Rights Watch, a New York-based advocacy group, called on Pakistan to take urgent measures to make schools safer and to fairly prosecute those responsible for such attacks.