ISLAMABAD: Nobel peace prize laureate Malala Yousafzai will attend a summit on girls’ education hosted by her native Pakistan, where she was nearly killed by militants as a schoolgirl.
Yousafzai was evacuated from the country in 2012 after being shot by the Pakistan Taliban, who were enraged by her activism, and she has returned to the country only a handful of times since.
“I am excited to join Muslim leaders from around the world for a critical conference on girls’ education,” she said Friday in a post on X.
“On Sunday, I will speak about protecting rights for all girls to go to school, and why leaders must hold the Taliban accountable for their crimes against Afghan women & girls.”
A spokesperson for her Malala Fund charity confirmed she will attend the summit in person.
The two-day summit will be held in the capital Islamabad on Saturday and Sunday, focusing on girls’ education in Muslim communities.
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Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai to visit native Pakistan for girls’ summit
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Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai to visit native Pakistan for girls’ summit
- Nobel peace prize laureate Malala Yousafzai will attend a summit on girls’ education hosted by her native Pakistan, where she was nearly killed by militants as a schoolgirl
Merz pushes PA’s Abbas on reforms ahead of Israel trip
BERLIN: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called for reforms of the Palestinian Authority in a phone call with its leader Mahmud Abbas early Saturday, hours before taking off for Israel.
Speaking from Berlin, Merz urged Abbas to push through “urgently necessary reforms” at the Palestinian Authority so that the organization could “play a constructive role in a post-war order,” according to German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius.
Merz also underscored German support for US President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza and “welcomed the Palestinian Authority’s cooperative attitude” toward the deal in the call, the spokesman said.
The fragile ceasefire agreement to end the Gaza war is supposed to be just the first phase of the plan.
Germany is among Israel’s closest allies and most outspoken supporters.
Merz’s call with Abbas came hours before the chancellor was scheduled to leave Berlin late Saturday morning for an overnight visit to Israel.
After a brief stop in Jordan, where Merz is scheduled to meet with the Jordanian King Abdullah II, Merz is expected to arrive in Jerusalem for meetings with top Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Merz also plans to visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Israel.
In his call with Abbas, Merz reiterated Germany’s position that a two-state solution remains the ultimate way to achieve peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians, according to the spokesman.
Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials hvae repeatedly rejected the prospect of an independent Palestinian state.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip from the Palestinian Authority in 2007, has also explicitly ruled out a two-state solution.
Speaking from Berlin, Merz urged Abbas to push through “urgently necessary reforms” at the Palestinian Authority so that the organization could “play a constructive role in a post-war order,” according to German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius.
Merz also underscored German support for US President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza and “welcomed the Palestinian Authority’s cooperative attitude” toward the deal in the call, the spokesman said.
The fragile ceasefire agreement to end the Gaza war is supposed to be just the first phase of the plan.
Germany is among Israel’s closest allies and most outspoken supporters.
Merz’s call with Abbas came hours before the chancellor was scheduled to leave Berlin late Saturday morning for an overnight visit to Israel.
After a brief stop in Jordan, where Merz is scheduled to meet with the Jordanian King Abdullah II, Merz is expected to arrive in Jerusalem for meetings with top Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Merz also plans to visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Israel.
In his call with Abbas, Merz reiterated Germany’s position that a two-state solution remains the ultimate way to achieve peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians, according to the spokesman.
Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials hvae repeatedly rejected the prospect of an independent Palestinian state.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip from the Palestinian Authority in 2007, has also explicitly ruled out a two-state solution.
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