Despite a wave of public backlash over the shooting of 14-year-old Malala Yousefzai, Taliban terrorists in Pakistan are continuing to target schoolgirls. Teenager Hina Khan’s family recently received a phone call warning, “Hina will be next after Malala.”


Hina Khan, like Malala Yousefzai, has spoken publicly about the need for girls’ education and women’s rights. Both girls are originally from Pakistan’s Swat Valley, which is largely controlled by the Taliban; the Khan family fled the region years ago due to threats of violence.


In addition to the phone call, someone drew a large red X on the gate of the Khan family’s home in Islamabad two days in a row.


Hina Khan’s mother Farhat also fights for women’s rights. “We have been fighting death for many years, since my wife started speaking for women’s rights and girls’ education,” her father said.


The Taliban has been engaged in fighting girls’ education in Pakistan and Afghanistan for some time. There have been 96 reported attacks on schools in Pakistan in 2012, according to the Global Post.


Afghanistan’s Ministry of Education reports that in Afghanistan, the Taliban has succeeded in shutting down 550 schools. Girls who still attend school have been targeted in acid attacks and mass poisonings.


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