Pakistan students protest naming school after activist schoolgirl shot by the Taliban

MINGORA, PakistanA Pakistani government official says several hundred students have rallied against naming their college after an activist schoolgirl shot by the Taliban, saying the move would be a security risk.

The Taliban shot and wounded 15-year-old Malala Yousufzai in October in Mingora, the main town in the northwest Swat Valley, because of her criticism of the militant group and her advocacy for girls' education.

Kamran Rehman, a senior official in Swat, says about 300 students took part in a protest Wednesday at Malala Government Degree College in Mingora. He says they broke a sign with the school's new name, tore down Malala's pictures, boycotted classes and broke the windows of a college bus.

Rehman said Thursday he was investigating whether any particular political group was responsible for the protest.

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Opinion on how to recognize Malala is divided in Pakistan.

Just last month, Pakistan marked "Malala Day" on Saturday - a global day of support for the teenager shot for promoting girls' education. Hundreds of students in her hometown prayed for her early recovery and vowed to continue her mission, however security fears prevented her schoolmates from honoring her in public.

Nearly 100,000 people have signed an online petition calling for her to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Her father, Ziauddin Yousufzai, said in October Malala is recovering from the shooting in the U.K. "with encouraging speed."