Woman who was shot in the head on her way home from school became the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize winner
Anish Vij
Featured Image Credit: ABC
Malala Yousafzai was just 15 years old when she was shot in the head while on her way home from school.
Incredibly, she survived, and while most of us would be left deeply traumatised by the scars of such an attack, she has used it as motivation to change the world, inspiring millions of young people.
"I speak not for myself, but for all girls and boys," she told the United Nations on her 16th birthday.
"I raise up my voice — not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard."
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A year later, she became the youngest ever Nobel Peace Prize winner.
But why does her opinion matter?
Born in Pakistan in 1997, Yousafzai grew up in Mingora, Swat Valley, and lived most of her school-life under a Taliban regime.
The extremist group burnt down girls schools and ruined all educational hopes for women in the area.
In 2009 Yousafzai's life was about to change after she wrote an anonymous BBC blog about life under the horrific regime.
Within the next 12 months, her identity was eventually revealed via TV interviews and a documentary, which prompted a viscous response from the Taliban.
On October 9, 2012, Taliban militants shot her in the head as she boarded a school bus, injuring her and two classmates.
Local soldiers shifted the injured Yousafzai from a helicopter to an army hospital in Rawalpindi.
She survived the attack and was eventually moved to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, where she continued her recovery.
Civil society activists, journalists and women in Swat Valley protested against the Taliban's actions despite there being a fatwa (a non-binding judgment on a point of Islamic law given by a recognised religious authority) issued against her.
The incident also sparked worldwide protest as the people from all different backgrounds were issuing their support.
By 2013, she had fully recovered and TIME magazine named her one of 'The 100 Most Influential People in the World', after she was lauded for her bravery in speaking out against the Taliban.
Her book I Am Malala became one of the best-selling memoirs of the year and the likes of Barack Obama and Queen Elizabeth II were pictured meeting the brave girl.
On her 16th birthday she spoke in the United Nations in New York.
In her speech Yousafzai called for the equal right to education for girls all over the world, and became a symbol of this cause.
And then in October 2014, aged just 17, she became the youngest ever person to win a Nobel Peace Prize.
"This award is not just for me," she said in her speech.
"It is for those forgotten children who want an 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.
"It is not time to pity them."
With more than 130 million girls out of school today, Yousafzai has set up non-profit Malala Fund which invests in education advocates and activists who are challenging the policies and practices that prevent girls from going to school.
Its goal is for all girls to access 12 years of free, safe, quality education.
Yousafzai has called on world leaders to invest in 'books, not bullets'.
As of today, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, 26, has graduated from Oxford University and married Asser Malik, a manager with the Pakistan Cricket Board.
Her production company, Extracurricular, also has a deal with Apple TV+ for a wide range of film and television projects.
She is now working on a new memoir.
In a statement released by Atria, she said: “The last few years of my life have been marked by extraordinary transformation, and all the anguish and joy that accompanies growth.
“This is my most personal book yet and I hope that readers will find recognition, reassurance, and insight in my story.”
Tyla's Female First series celebrates women who were the first to achieve something special in their field.