MINGORA, Pakistan (Reuters) – Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai visited her hometown in Pakistan's Swat Valley on Saturday for the first time since she was shot by a Taliban gunman as a teenager.
Roads leading to the 20-year-old education activist's childhood home in Mingora were blocked off earlier in the day, and a helicopter was seen landing at a government guest house about 1 km (half a mile) from her house.
“I was told by the family that it was very moving when Malala visited her home.” said Jawad Iqbal Yousafzai, who is from the same Pashtun clan as Malala and said he had spoken to her father, Ziauddin Yousafzai.
He said that the family was expected to also visit a local army cadet college as well as a tourist resort.
With its scenic mountains and rivers, Swat is popular with holiday makers in Pakistan.
Yousafzai has been visiting Pakistan since Thursday, her first trip home since she was shot and airlifted abroad for treatment. The government and military have been providing security.
It had been uncertain whether Yousafzai would be able to visit Swat, parts of which spent nearly two years under the Pakistani Taliban militants' harsh interpretation of Islamic law, due to continued concerns for her safety.
