London: Anguished by the lynching of a Pakistani student for alleged blasphemy, Nobel Laureate Malala Yousafzai said Pakistanis themselves are responsible for tarnishing the image of Islam and the country.
Mashal Khan, who studied journalism at the Abdukl Wali Khan University in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, was mercilessly beaten and then shot dead by a vigilante mob of students from the same varsity, suspecting him of publishing blasphemous content online and promoting the Ahmadi faith, police said.
The 19-year-old UK-based Pakistani education activist, in a video message said, "today I got the news of Mashal Khan's death. This incident is full of terror and violence. I have spoken to his father who gave the message of peace and patience. I appreciate and salute his message of patience and peace".
"We complain that there is Islamophobia, countries are tarnishing the name of our country. No one is diminishing Pakistan and Islam; we ourselves are tarnishing the name of Pakistan and Islam. We ourselves are responsible for tarnishing the image of Pakistan," Malala said.
