Malala's dad gets UK job appointment

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BIRMINGHAM, England, Jan. 3 (UPI) -- The father of a teenage Pakistani advocate for girls' education who was shot by the Taliban, was given a job in Britain, close to his daughter, officials said.

Ziauddin Yousafzai has been appointed as the education attache at the Pakistan consulate in Birmingham, England, for three years, Pakistani officials said Wednesday. His position could be extended for an additional two years, CNN reported.

Ziauddin's daughter, Malala, was shot in the head in October by Taliban members who stopped a school van in which she was riding. They had targeted her because she was outspoken about education for girls, something banned by the Taliban.

"We do not tolerate people like Malala speaking against us," the Taliban said in a statement after the shooting.

Malala is currently undergoing treatment for her injury at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, CNN reported.

Ziauddin's appointment fulfills a pledge Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari made to meet "all expenses of Malala's treatment and all the needs of the family while in UK," a statement released Wednesday said.

Ziauddin ran a school open to girls in defiance of the Taliban in Pakistan's conservative Swat Valley at the time of his daughter's shooting, CNN reported.