In a rather unexpected move, pop icon Justin Bieber took some time out from breaking the law and getting into altercations with Orlando Bloom to Facetime with youth activist Malala Yousufzai, who survived an assassination attempt by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in 2012.

Yousafzai was just 15 when she was shot in the head while returning from school in Mingora, Pakistan, in October 2012. She had angered the fundamentalist group by writing about life under the Taliban for the BBC, and arguing that girls should be allowed to pursue an education.

Bieber expressed a desire to help Malala's cause and meet the young activist in person.

On Facebook, he shared a badly cropped photo of the chat, and wrote:

`

`

Editorial

Updated 04 Aug, 2026

Swat bombing

IT is a bitter irony that terrorists struck a protest against violence in Swat on Sunday, causing at least 17...
04 Aug, 2026

Tariff blow

FOR an export sector already squeezed by high production costs, the additional 10pc tariff on top of the existing...
04 Aug, 2026

Perilous peaks

THE deaths of 10 climbers in an avalanche on Broad Peak is a sad reminder of the perils that many mountaineers face...
Updated 03 Aug, 2026

Farewell to arms?

PALESTINIAN resistance group Hamas recently made a major concession by agreeing to give up its weapons. It should be...
03 Aug, 2026

Unplanned future

A PROJECTION that Pakistan’s population could reach 400m by 2040 should not be treated as another dramatic number...
03 Aug, 2026

No more torture

EVEN the best laws on the books are worth little unless the state shows the willingness to enforce them. This is...