Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani social activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, announced Tuesday on social media that she "tied the knot" with her partner in an Islamic ceremony in Birmingham, England.

The 24-year-old, who has been a fierce advocate for girls and women’s rights and education, said she married Asser Malik in a small ceremony at her parents' home.

“Today marks a precious day in my life. Asser and I tied the knot to be partners for life,” Yousafzai said.

“We celebrated a small nikkah ceremony at home in Birmingham with our families. Please send us your prayers. We are excited to walk together for the journey ahead."

The world’s youngest winner of the Nobel Prize has not revealed much about her husband.

There is little information about Malik. Internet users identified Malik as a general manager of the Pakistan Cricket Board's High Performance Centre, Reuters noted.

Malik's Instagram account shows images of him at sporting events. One posting shows Malik, Yousafzai and others at Edgbaston Cricket Ground in Birmingham, with the caption: "Rooting for Pakistan with Saqlain Bhai, @aslitareen @adnanmalik1 and @malala #cwc19." Malik has nearly 4,900 followers on Instagram.

Yousafzai's parents told Vogue that this was “an arranged love marriage.”

Yousafzai was not initially so open to marriage. In an interview with British Vogue magazine in July, she mentioned she was not sure if she would ever marry.

"I still don't understand why people have to get married. If you want to have a person in your life, why do you have to sign marriage papers, why can't it just be a partnership?" Yousafzai said.

A post shared by instagram

Now, with a ring on her finger, she tells Vogue that seeing her university friends settle down had gradually opened her mind to the prospect.

“Even until my second year of university,” she said, “I just thought, ‘I’m never going to get married, never going to have kids—just going to do my work. I’m going to be happy and live with my family forever. I didn’t realize that you’re not the same person all the time,” she said. “You change as well and you’re growing.”

Yousafzai moved to England from Pakistan after being shot in the head by the Taliban at age 15. Since then, she co-founded the Malala Fund in 2013 and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014.

Most recently, Yousafzai graduated from the University of Oxford in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, politics and economics.

RELATED STORIES