In heartwarming news, girls education advocate and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai has married her partner Asser Malik in a sweet, intimate ceremony in Birmingham, UK.
The 24-year-old shared the news on her Instagram page with several stunning images from the day, which took place at her parents home with her close family present.
In the caption, the Pakistani activist wrote: “Today marks a precious day in my life. Asser and I tied the knot to be partners for life.”
She continued: “We celebrated a small nikkah ceremony at home in Birmingham with our families. Please send us your prayers. We are excited to walk together for the journey ahead.”
Malala previously spoke about marriage with British Vogue, telling the publication in July 2021 that she didn’t understand why people had to sign papers in order to solidify their partnership.
“I still don’t understand why people have to get married. If you want to have a person in your life, why do you have to sign marriage papers, why can’t it just be a partnership? My mum is like… ‘Don’t you dare say anything like that! You have to get married, marriage is beautiful’,” she told the publication.
But her outlook shifted after she saw several of her peers get married.
“Even until my second year of university, I just thought, ‘I’m never going to get married, never going to have kids—just going to do my work, I’m going to be happy and live with my family forever,'” she said in the interview.
“I didn’t realise that you’re not the same person all the time. You change as well and you’re growing.”
Malala began blogging for the BBC about her experience with the Taliban’s growing influence in the Swat region of Pakistan at just 12-years-old.
When she was 15, she was attacked by a member of the Taliban who shot her in the head. She was flown to the UK for treatment and survived the ordeal.
Afterwards, Malala remained in the UK where she attended an all-girls school in Birmingham. From there, her influence grew. Her continued activism and campaigning for women’s rights and girls’ education saw her become the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate in history—she was aged just 17 at the time.
In her acceptance speech, her stirring words surmised the incredible work she has done to date, and why she keeps going.
“This award is not just for me. It is for those forgotten children who want education. It is for those frightened children who want peace. It is for those voiceless children who want change. I am here to stand up for their rights, to raise their voice.”
In her 2019 book, We Are Displaced she said of the 2012 Taliban shooting, “Instead of silencing me, they amplified my voice beyond Pakistan.”
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