Meet the youngest Nobel Peace Prize nominee in history (Malala Yousafzai)

On Oct. 9, 2012, Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman as she returned from school. She had been campaigning for girls education in Pakistan’s Swat valley. Pictured, Ms. Yousafzai in Birmingham, England, September 2013.

Ms. Yousafzai, who was 15 at the time of the assassination attempt, was flown to the U.K. for treatment at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. In March, after being discharged from the hospital, Ms. Yousafzai began attending Edgbaston High School. Pictured, Ms. Yousafzai read a book as she recovered from surgery.

Ms. Yousafzai began writing a blog for BBC Urdu under the pseudonym Gul Makai when she was 11. She wrote about life under the Taliban in Swat, in northwestern Pakistan, where several schools were closed. Pictured, Ms. Yousafzai leaving hospital in January.

One entry in her online diary was titled “I May Not Go To School Again.” In it, she said she was unsure her school would reopen after the winter vacation. “This time round, the girls were not too excited about vacations because they knew if the Taliban implemented their edict, they would not be able to come to school again,” she wrote. A few public speeches and television interviews later, in December 2009, her father revealed that Ms. Yousafzai was the BBC blogger. In April 2013, Ms. Yousafzai appeared in Time magazine’s annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Ms. Yousafzai signed a book deal this year. “I am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban,” co-written by British journalist Christina Lamb, was released on Oct. 8. A 14-year-old girl, Shazia Ramzan, was also injured in the attack by the Taliban last October. In an interview with India Real Time, Ms. Ramzan said it was unsafe for Ms. Yousafzai to return to the valley. “But I don’t think she will forget us,” she added. Pictured, Ms. Yousafzai, left, sat with Ms. Ramzan, at Birmingham Airport in June.

On July 12, her 16th birthday, Ms. Yousafzai delivered a speech at the United Nations Youth Assembly. She spoke of the need for education for all children. “Let us pick up our books and pens. They are our most powerful weapons,” she said. The U.N. named July 12 “Malala Day.” Pictured, a woman held a brochure at the U.N. headquarters on July 12.

Ms. Yousafzai is the youngest Nobel Peace Prize nominee in history. The average age of a peace prize laureate is 62. Ms. Yousafzai is one of 259 nominees, including 50 organizations, this year. The winner will be announced on Friday, Oct. 11. Pictured, Ms. Yousafzai signed U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s guestbook at the U.N. headquarters in New York.

In September, Ms. Yousafzai opened the Library of Birmingham, one of the biggest public libraries in the world. Pictured, Ms. Yousafzai during the opening ceremony.

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Two weeks later, Ms. Yousafzai received Amnesty International’s highest award. The Ambassador of Conscience Award was presented to her by U2 frontman Bono.

Ms. Yousafzai won the International Children’s Peace Prize in September. “I was just one target of their violence. There are many others for whom we must continue,” Ms. Yousafzai said in her acceptance speech. Pictured, the teenager received her award at a ceremony in the Netherlands.

Below is a video of Ms. Yousafzai addressing the Youth Assembly at the U.N. “Malala Day is not my day. Today is the day of every woman, every boy and every girl who has raised a voice for their rights,” she said.

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