Forum Post: Tens of thousands rally in Pakistan for girl shot by Taliban

Pakistani Christians pray for the recovery of 14-year-old schoolgirl Malala Yousufzai, who was shot last Tuesday by a Taliban gunman for speaking out in support of education for women, at the Sacred Heart Cathedral Church in Lahore, Pakistan Oct. 14. Tens of thousands of Pakistanis took to the streets and protested Yousufzai's shooting on Sunday.

The leaders of Pakistan's main Islamic parties have criticized the shooting, but have also tried to redirect the conversation away from Taliban violence and toward civilian casualties from US drone attacks.

Cyril Almeida, a columnist for Pakistan's Dawn newspaper, said this type of "obfuscation" prevents Pakistanis from seeing "there is a continuum from the religious right to violent Islamism."