President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday telephoned Zia-ud-Din Yousufzai, father of Malala Yousufzai. The President while expressing grief and shock over the incident strongly condemned the barbaric act of the militants. He said that through such acts the militants had shown their real face to the world.
The President said that militants would never succeed in shaking the resolve of the people and the government through those barbaric acts and "this incident has further rejuvenated our spirits to face the menace of militancy head on." The President prayed for early recovery of Malala Yousufzai and said prayers of the whole nation were with Malala.
He said, "Malala symbolises the quest for education by the girls of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and is also a symbol of courage of our women to challenge and stand against barbarity and oppression." He said doctors of Pakistan Armed Forces were providing best medical treatment to the injured girl and the government would put into service all possible means for the treatment and early recovery of Malala Yousufzai. The President also expressed sympathies for the friends of Malala who sustained injuries during the attack of the militants on the school van.-PR