Story highlights Malala Yousafzai will return to hospital in Birmingham, England for more surgery

Taliban gunmen stopped a van carrying Malala and shot her

The extremists wanted to kill her for promoting education for girls

There was a global outpouring of sympathy for Malala, as she fought for her life

It began with a ride home from school on Tuesday, October 9.

Gunmen halted the van ferrying Malala Yousafzai through her native Swat Valley, one of the most conservative regions in Pakistan. They demanded that other girls in the vehicle identify her. Malala had faced frequent death threats in the past.

Some of the girls pointed her out. At least one gunman opened fire, wounding three girls. Two suffered non-life-threatening injuries, but bullets struck Malala in the head and neck.

The bus driver hit the gas. The assailants got away.

Malala was left in critical condition. An uncle described her as having excruciating pain and being unable to stop moving her arms and legs.

Doctors fought to save her life, then her condition took a dip. They operated to remove a bullet from her neck. After surgery, she was unresponsive for three days.

Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani Christians attend a prayer service for the recovery of teen activist Malala Yousufzai in Lahore on Sunday, November 11, 2012. Pakistan celebrated Malala Day on Saturday as part of a global day of support for the teenager shot by the Taliban. Hide Caption 1 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani Christians attend a prayer service in Lahore on Sunday. Malala, 15, went from an intensive care unit in Pakistan, showing no signs of consciousness, to walking, writing, reading and smiling in a hospital in the UK. Hide Caption 2 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani supporters hold photographs of Malala as they stand alongside burning candles during a ceremony to mark Malala Day in Karachi on Saturday, November 10, 2012. The teen activist was shot in the head by the Taliban as she rode home from school in a van last month. She had defied the militant group by insisting on the right of girls to go to school. The attack has stirred outrage in Pakistan and around the world. Hide Caption 3 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani students shout slogans near photographs of Malala in Karachi on Saturday. Hide Caption 4 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – A Pakistani girl carries a photograph of Malala in Karachi to mark Malala Day. Hide Caption 5 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani students attend a Malala Day ceremony in Lahore on Saturday. Hide Caption 6 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – A Pakistani student in Lahore writes a message on a placard on Saturday. Hide Caption 7 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Indian teachers add finishing touches to a "Malala Rangoli" at a high school in Ahmedabad on Saturday. Hide Caption 8 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Malala sits up in her hospital bed with her father, Ziauddin, and her two younger brothers, Atal Khan, right, and Khushal Khan on Friday, October 26, 2012, at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham in Birmingham, England. Hide Caption 9 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani human rights activists light candles during a Sunday, October 21, 2012, vigil for Malala Yousufzai in Lahore. Hide Caption 10 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Students at the Sacred Heart Cathedral School in Lahore attend special prayers on Friday, October 19, 2012, for Malala's recovery. Hide Caption 11 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Campaigners gather Friday for a vigil for Malala in Birmingham, England. Hide Caption 12 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – An activist with the Association for the Advancement of Feminism lights candles during a vigil in Hong Kong on Friday. Hide Caption 13 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Activists light candles during Friday's vigil in Hong Kong. Hide Caption 14 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Indian sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik puts final touches on a sand sculpture in honor of Malala at Puri Beach, India, on Tuesday, October 16. Hide Caption 15 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani demonstrators chant slogans during a protest against the assassination attempt by the Taliban on Tuesday in Islamabad, Pakistan. Hide Caption 16 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani activists of the Islamic Sunni Tehreek party carry flags at a rally in Islamabad on Sunday, October 14, 2012. Hide Caption 17 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Veiled Pakistani women participate in Sunday's rally. Hide Caption 18 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Supporters of a Pakistani political party, Muttahida Quami Movement, gather during a protest procession for Malala in Karachi, Pakistan. Hide Caption 19 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani leaders of the movement sit in front of a poster of Malala at a procession in Karachi. Hide Caption 20 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – A Pakistani youth places an oil lamp next to a photograph of teen activist Malala Yousufzai on Friday, October 12, 2012, in Karachi, Pakistan. Hide Caption 21 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani school girls pray for the recovery of teen activist Malala Yousufzai at their school in Peshawar. Hide Caption 22 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani hospital workers carry Malala on a stretcher at a hospital following the attack on Tuesday, October 9, 2012. Malala was shot in the head while riding home in a school van in the Taliban-heavy Swat Valley, officials said. Hide Caption 23 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Supporters hold portraits of Malala as they pray for her well-being in Karachi, Pakistan in 2012. Malala gained fame for blogging about how girls should have rights in Pakistan, including the right to learn. Hide Caption 24 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – A Pakistani Muslim prays for Malala during Friday prayers in Karachi. Malala, whose writing earned her Pakistan's first National Peace Prize, also encouraged young people to take a stand against the Taliban -- and to not hide in their bedrooms. Hide Caption 25 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Supporters place candles to pay tribute to Malala in Islamabad on Wednesday. Hide Caption 26 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – A Pakistani female activist holds a photograph of Malala and prays for her recovery in Islamabad on Saturday. Hide Caption 27 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani students pray for Malala at a school in Mingora on Thursday. Hide Caption 28 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala =Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani Muslims bow their heads and pray for Malala during Friday prayers in Karachi. Hide Caption 29 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani school girls pray for the Malala's recovery. Over the weekend, the teen moved her limbs after doctors "reduced sedation to make a clinical assessment," military spokesman Maj. Gen. Asim Bajwa said. Hide Caption 30 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – A Pakistani female covers her face during prayers in Karachi. Hide Caption 31 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani civil society activists carry banners in Islamabad on Wednesday as they shout ant-Taliban slogans during a protest against the assassination attempt. Hide Caption 32 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Children of Pakistani journalists and civil society activists light candles in Islamabad. Hide Caption 33 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani Christians attend a mass prayer for the recovery of Malala at Fatima Church in Islamabad. Hide Caption 34 of 35 Photos: Photos: Supporters rally behind Malala Supporters rally behind Malala – Pakistani Christians attend a mass praying for the recovery of Malala at a church in Lahore. Hide Caption 35 of 35

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Now, it is nothing short of a miracle that the teen blogger, who fights for the right of girls to get an education, is still alive and even more astounding that she suffered no major brain or nerve damage.

In hardly more than four weeks, she went from an intensive care unit in Pakistan, showing no signs of consciousness, to walking, writing, reading -- and smiling -- again in a hospital in the United Kingdom.

Less than three months after being gunned down, she was discharged from the hospital to continue her rehabilitation at her family's temporary home. Her father is now employed at the Pakistani Consulate in Great Britain.

On Wednesday, doctors announced that she is expected to undergo groundbreaking surgery in Birmingham, England to repair her skull.

And beyond her hospital room, a world sympathetic with her ordeal has transformed her into a global symbol for the fight to allow girls everywhere access to an education.

The United Nations even declared November 10, Malala Day as a day of action to focus on "Malala and the 32 million girls like Malala not at school."

The Pakistani Taliban shot Malala

Malala has encouraged girls and their families to resist the Pakistani Taliban, which pushed girls from classrooms, since she was 11.

In January 2009, the militants issued an edict ordering that no school should educate girls. Malala wrote in her online diary about intimidation tactics the Taliban used in the Swat Valley in northwest Pakistan to coerce girls into not going school.

They included house raids to search for books, and Malala had to hide hers under her bed.

The extremists took issue with her writings and threatened to kill her.

"I was scared of being beheaded by the Taliban because of my passion for education," she told CNN last year.

Right after her shooting, her family kept a low profile, for fear they could be next. The militants vowed that if Malala survived, they'd go after her again.

"We will certainly kill her," a spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban said.

Global outpouring of support

The bloodletting sparked outrage inside Pakistan against the radical Islamist group, which continues to wield influence in parts of the country. Around the world, the young blogger has become a poster child for a widespread need to permit girls to get an education.

Initially, supporters in Pakistan gathered for small vigils to pray for Malala's recovery. Government officials in Peshawar, the main city in the northwestern region where Malala is from, observed a minute of silence in her honor.

Public support snowballed, and thousands of people in Pakistan and elsewhere attended rallies honoring her courage.

Protesters in Karachi carried posters and banners reading: "Malala, our prayers are with you" and "Shame on you, Taliban."

The airwaves filled with leaders and commentators who publicly got behind her, and journalists closely followed her story, drawing death threats from the Taliban for their coverage.

Army Chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani took a stand from Malala's hospital, declaring: "We refuse to bow before terror."

Pakistan's first female foreign minister, Hina Rabbani Khar, decried the attempted assassination as "a wake-up call (to) a clear and present danger."

Interior Minister Rehman Malik dubbed Malala "the pride of Pakistan" and announced that her local school would be renamed for her, changing from "Khushal Public School" to "Malala Public High School."

Authorities in Swat renamed a college after her. Malala later requested that schools not be named for her, to prevent them from becoming prominent targets for the Pakistani Taliban.

The United Nations launched a campaign for girls' education named "I am Malala." Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the attack and praised Malala's cause.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton commended the blogger's bravery; Actress Angelina Jolie donated $50,000 to a charity in Malala's name. And singer Madonna shouted her name from a stage, dedicating a song to her.

Malik proclaimed that the two other girls injured in the attack on Malala -- Kainat Riaz Ahmed and Shazia Ramzan -- will be honored with the third-highest military award, the Star of Courage. It is not normally given to civilians.

Gordon Brown and Malala galvanize action

girl's right to education," former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown wrote in an opinion piece published by CNN. "Pakistan has a new heroine and a new cause -- agirl's right to education," former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown wrote in

Brown, who heads up the "I am Malala" campaign in his role as United Nations special envoy on global education, toured Pakistan to boost education with international funding and local initiatives. It was his office that declared Malala Day.

After her shooting, Brown visited schools, including hers. He talked education for three days with Pakistan's president, Cabinet ministers, educational nongovernmental organizations, donors and a covey of U.N. charities.

Malala's path from near mortal wound to recovery

In addition to removing the bullet, doctors extracted a piece of skull to relieve pressure on Malala's brain because of swelling. Malala was taken by helicopter from one military hospital in Pakistan to another, where doctors placed her in a medically induced coma, so an air ambulance could fly her to Great Britain for treatment.

"She is lucky to be alive," Dr. Dave Rosser, the medical director of University Hospitals in Birmingham, UK, told reporters after her arrival.

Then came the light at the end of the tunnel. Examinations revealed that Malala suffered no major neurological damage.

More than a week after being shot a world away, Malala got back on her feet again, able to stand when leaning on a nurse's arm at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. Eager to communicate, she wrote sentences on paper -- she couldn't talk at first because of a tracheotomy.

"Malala is a strong young woman and has worked hard with the people caring for her to make excellent progress in her recovery," Rosser said on her release.

She has returned to her family and continues therapies as an outpatient at the hospital where she will undergo further surgery on her skull.

Chasing the perpetrators

Malik, the Pakistani interior minister, quickly placed a $1 million bounty on the head of Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan, after he claimed responsibility for Malala's attack on behalf of the group.

Police immediately took the van driver and the school guard into custody for questioning and rounded up dozens in the course of the investigation.

They have identified the shooters as two boys, but their main suspect is an adult, who the police say drove the youths to the scene -- Atta Ullah Khan, 23. All three were at large.

In an interview with CNN, Khan's sister apologized to Malala for his alleged involvement.

"What he did was intolerable," Rehana Haleem said. "I don't consider Atta Ullah my brother anymore."

She called Malala her sister.

What's next for Malala?

After regaining strength, Malala is now set to endure more surgery. Doctors at Queen Elizabeth hospital will replace the piece of skull extracted in Pakistan. Her lead doctor, Dr. Rosser, "does not envisage any difficulties" in a pair of operations to repair her skull or fix the hearing in her left ear, he said Wednesday.

Malala is no stranger to recognition, and her ordeal has boosted it to global proportions.

She has penned her online diary in cooperation with the BBC in the past, and has spoken to other media, including CNN. At home, her writings led to her being awarded Pakistan's first National Peace Prize in late 2011.

From her hospital room in the UK, Malala asked early on for her school books, so she could study for exams she wants to take when she arrives back home in Pakistan.

She is all about education.