Pakistani Nobel laureate and rights activist Malala Yousafzai announced on Tuesday that she had tied the knot in an intimate ceremony at her home in Birmingham.

“Today marks a precious day in my life. Asser and I tied the knot to be partners for life. 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 24-year-old posted on Twitter, along with some photos of the couple.

The photos were taken by Malin Fezehai, an awarding- winning photographer and filmmaker.

The photos show the Nobel laureate signing Nikah papers with her now husband in the presence of her parents.

According to his Twitter profile, Asser Malik works at the Pakistan Cricket Board’s High Performance Department. His most recent tweets to Malala are from her birthday in July, as well as an earlier post saying he is proud of her.

Malala’s happy news was met with a chorus of tweets wishing her good luck and congratulating her on the nuptials. From Jemima Khan to Maleeka Bukhari and Aseefa B Zardari, Twitter users wished her happiness and prosperity.

Malala graduated from the University of Oxford in 2020, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE).

Published in Dawn, November 10th, 2021