World
Eight Out of 10 Malala Suspects ‘Secretly Acquitted’
Malala Yousafzai speaks during a media conference at the Library of Birmingham in England on Oct. 10 after she was named as winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. (Rui Vieira/AP Photo)
(BBC) – Eight of the 10 men reportedly jailed for the attempted assassination of Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai were acquitted, it has emerged.
In April, officials in Pakistan said that 10 Taliban fighters had been found guilty and received 25-year jail terms.
But sources have now confirmed to the BBC that only two of the men who stood trial were convicted.
The secrecy surrounding the trial, which was held behind closed doors, raised suspicions over its validity.
The court judgement – seen for the first time on Friday more than a month after the trial – claims that the two men convicted were those who shot Yousafzai in 2012.
