Hospital: Pakistani teen activist Malala awake, talking after successful surgeries
By CNN Staff
February 4, 2013 -- Updated 1349 GMT (2149 HKT)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Operations to repair Malala's skull and help her hearing "were a success," the hospital says
- Queen Elizabeth Hospital: She is stable, "awake and talking to staff and members of her family"
- Saturday's five-hour surgery is the latest step on a long road to recovery for the teen activist
- In October Taliban gunmen shot her in the head and neck
London (CNN) -- Pakistani teen activist Malala Yousufzai was in stable condition at a British hospital on Sunday after undergoing surgeries to repair her skull and help her hearing, officials said.
"Both operations were a success and Malala is now recovering in hospital. Her medical team are 'very pleased' with the progress she has made so far," the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham said in a statement. "She is awake and talking to staff and members of her family."
READ: Malala's recovery crosses key threshold
Saturday's five-hour surgeries were the latest step on a long road to recovery for Malala, who was shot in the head and neck by Taliban gunmen in October for speaking out in favor of education for Pakistani girls.
Malala's road to recovery
Malala's road to recovery
Malala's road to recovery
Malala's road to recovery
Malala's road to recovery
Malala's road to recovery
Malala's road to recovery
Malala's road to recovery
HIDE CAPTION
Photos: Malala's recovery
Malala thanks supporters
The schoolgirl who took on the Taliban
Last week doctors said they would use a titanium plate to cover an opening in her skull, and give her a cochlear implant to partially restore hearing in her left ear.
READ: Malala's journey from near death to recovery
The plate was necessary to replace a section of her skull about the size of a hand, which doctors removed to relieve swelling after the shooting. And the inner ear implant will restore some function to her damaged ear, doctors said last week.
The 15-year-old became an international symbol of courage after she was shot by Taliban gunmen last fall for her crusade about girls going to school.
She had blogged fearlessly about girls' education and accused the Taliban of thriving on ignorance. The Taliban forbid girls in the classroom and have threatened to kill anyone who defies them.
Malala was in a school van on October 9 when the gunmen stopped the vehicle and shot her at point-blank range.
She was flown to the British hospital six days later.
Doctors there discharged her last month, and she has been recovering with her family at a temporary home nearby. Her father, who had been an educator in Pakistan, is now employed at the Pakistani Consulate in Birmingham.
On Sunday, officials said Malala would remain hospitalized until she is well enough to be discharged.
READ: Pakistan's Malala: Global symbol, but still just a kid
CNN's Ben Brumfield, Laura Smith-Spark and Per Nyberg contributed to this report.
Part of complete coverage on
-- Updated GMT ( HKT)
The teen blogger simply sought to get an education. But she became a symbol of defiance against militants, empowering young women worldwide.
April 30, 2013 -- Updated 1253 GMT (2053 HKT)
See photos of Malala's journey from her hospital bed to her first day at school.
January 28, 2013 -- Updated 2012 GMT (0412 HKT)
Becky Anderson checks in on Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousufzai, who has become a global symbol for girls' education.
October 19, 2012 -- Updated 1744 GMT (0144 HKT)
Hundreds of messages from around the world were received by CNN for Malala Yousufzai, the Pakistani teen activist attacked by the Taliban.
January 30, 2013 -- Updated 2009 GMT (0409 HKT)
Doctors fought to save her life, then her condition took a dip. They operated to remove a bullet from her neck. She was unresponsive for three days.
January 30, 2013 -- Updated 1031 GMT (1831 HKT)
The University Hospital in Birmingham, UK show scans and 3D images of Malala's head wound.
November 10, 2012 -- Updated 1407 GMT (2207 HKT)
Pakistan has a new heroine and a new cause -- a girl's right to education. Now the government vows to get every child into school by end 2015.
October 19, 2012 -- Updated 1428 GMT (2228 HKT)
The Pakistani Taliban sought to silence the teenage education activist Malala Yousufzai. Now it's the news media and journalists they threaten.
October 15, 2012 -- Updated 1545 GMT (2345 HKT)
The Pakistan Taliban's attack on Malala Yousufzai has reawakened the country to the threat of extremists, says Frida Ghitis.
October 17, 2012 -- Updated 1639 GMT (0039 HKT)
In an exclusive interview, Kainat Ahmad, who was shot with Malala Yousufzai, talks to CNN about last week's attack by the Pakistani Taliban.
October 17, 2012 -- Updated 1622 GMT (0022 HKT)
The Pakistani Taliban attack on a teenage girl is the latest in a long list of assaults against the military and civilians, analysts say.
January 30, 2013 -- Updated 1048 GMT (1848 HKT)
Eleven-year-olds sometimes are kept awake by monsters they can't see. But Malala began believing that she was stronger than the things that scared her.
October 17, 2012 -- Updated 0918 GMT (1718 HKT)
A week ago, a Pakistani schoolgirl who dared to speak out against the Taliban took a bullet to the head for her act of defiance.
October 16, 2012 -- Updated 1151 GMT (1951 HKT)
The 14-year-old Pakistani girl who was shot in the head simply because she wants an education has become an international symbol of defiance against the Taliban.
October 15, 2012 -- Updated 0641 GMT (1441 HKT)
Thousands rally in Pakistan for Malala Yousufzai amid signs of growing fury with the Taliban.
October 15, 2012 -- Updated 1541 GMT (2341 HKT)
The story of Malala's fight to attend school has exposed our failure to deliver on universal education, writes former British PM Gordon Brown.
Today's five most popular stories