Pakistani Christians attend a prayer service for the recovery of teen activist Malala Yousufzai in Lahore on Sunday, November 11. Pakistan celebrated Malala Day on Saturday as part of a global day of support for the teenager shot by the Taliban.
Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Malala Yousufzai's defiance is the stuff of legend: A 14-year-old teenager who took to the Internet to tell the world of her daily battle against the Pakistan Taliban to get an education.
So, too, is her fight to survive a would-be assassin's bullet to the head.
Her plight has united much of the nation, with everyone from elected officials to children decrying the attempted killing of the teen. Thousands took to the streets Sunday in Karachi, at a rally supporting Malala organized by the fiercely anti-Taliban MQM political party.
Massive posters and billboards said, "Malala, our prayers are with you."
Attack on teen blogger consumes Pakistan
The teen remained under the close watch of doctors at a Rawalpindi hospital where she was unconscious and on a ventilator.
"She is making slow and steady progress which is in keeping with expectations," the Pakistani military said in a statement released Sunday. "Recovery from this type of injury is always slow."
Doctors will assess Malala's progress again Sunday evening, the statement said.
Over the weekend, the teen moved her limbs after doctors "reduced sedation to make a clinical assessment," military spokesman Maj. Gen. Asim Bajwa said.
It was the first indication that young Malala may recover from the shooting, though Bajwa cautioned against "putting a percentage" on her survival.
"Such cases are very rare, that you get hit directly in the head and you survive," Bajwa told CNN in an interview that aired Sunday.
"...We are hopeful. She is getting the best treatment that she could."
A delegation from the United Arab Emirates arrived Sunday to check on Malala's condition and is exploring the possibility of offering her medical treatment outside of Pakistan, two UAE officials said.
Malala had become a Pakistani and international icon for her efforts defending the right of girls to go to school where she lives, the Taliban-heavy Swat Valley.
She was riding home in a school van on Tuesday in the tense region, which sits along the Afghan border, when gunmen jumped into the vehicle and demanded to know which girl she was. Her horrified classmates pointed to her, and the men fired. Two other girls were wounded, but not seriously.
Pakistani official: Teen blogger's shooting 'wake-up call' to 'danger'
Since then, supporters have gathered around the country for vigils to pray for her recovery. Government officials in Peshawar, the main city in the northwestern region where Malala is from, were silent for one minute in her honor.
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Malala gained fame for blogging about how girls should have rights in Pakistan, including the right to learn. She spoke out in a region of the country where support for Islamic fundamentalism runs high.
"I have the right of education," she said in a CNN interview last year. "I have the right to play. I have the right to sing. I have the right to talk. I have the right to go to market. I have the right to speak up."
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.
Police arrested 200 suspects, but released all but 35. Those still in detention gave police information that led to the arrest of three more suspects, said Ghulam Muhammad, a local government official.
Bajwa refused to comment on the reports of the arrests, saying it was "not appropriate" to disclose details until the investigation was complete.
He did, however, point blame.
"There is no doubt in anyone's mind this is Taliban," he said.
Opinion: Girl's courage, Taliban's cowardice
The Taliban, indeed, claimed responsibility for the shooting attack, saying they figured shooting the girl would have an impact in the West. The Taliban believe no girl should be educated, and they've threatened that if Malala survives, they will murder her.
"We do not tolerate people like Malala speaking against us," Taliban spokesman Ihsanullah Ihsan said.
Malala's family, meanwhile, waits, and hopes, yet they are afraid to give away where they are exactly. They're terrified that the Taliban who would gun down a teenager wouldn't hesitate to come after them.
In the wake of the shooting, the teenager has come to symbolize a battle between freedom and oppression, violence and peace, a young generation and a group that is hell-bent on keeping Pakistan under the grip of Islamic extremism.
On her blog, Malala often wrote about her life in Swat Valley, a hotbed of militant activity.
The valley near the Afghanistan border once attracted tourists to Pakistan's only ski resort, as well as visitors to the ancient Buddhist ruins in the area. But that was before militants -- their faces covered -- unleashed a wave of violence in 2003.
They demanded veils for women, beards for men and a ban on music and television. They allowed boys' schools to operate but closed those for girls.
But young Malala defied the Taliban edict, demanding an education.
For that, she got a bullet to the head -- and the attention of much of the world.
New hope in wounded Pakistani teen activist's struggle to survive
CNN's Jessica King, Caroline Faraj and journalists Nasir Habib, Aamir Iqbal and Noreen Shams contributed to this report.
© 2013 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Pakistani Christians attend a prayer service in Lahore on Sunday. In the past month, Malala, 15, has gone from an intensive care unit in Pakistan, showing no signs of consciousness, to walking, writing, reading and smiling in a hospital in the UK.
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. 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.
Pakistani students shout slogans near photographs of Malala in Karachi on Saturday.
A Pakistani girl carries a photograph of Malala in Karachi to mark Malala Day.
Pakistani students attend a Malala Day ceremony in Lahore on Saturday.
A Pakistani student in Lahore writes a message on a placard on Saturday.
Indian teachers add finishing touches to a "Malala Rangoli" at a high school in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
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, at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham in Birmingham, England.
Pakistani human rights activists light candles during a Sunday, October 21, vigil for Malala Yousufzai in Lahore.
Students at the Sacred Heart Cathedral School in Lahore attend special prayers on Friday, October 19, for Malala's recovery.
Campaigners gather Friday for a vigil for Malala in Birmingham, England.
An activist with the Association for the Advancement of Feminism lights candles during a vigil in Hong Kong on Friday.
Activists light candles during Friday's vigil in Hong Kong.
Indian sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik puts final touches on a sand sculpture in honor of Malala at Puri Beach, India, on Tuesday, October 16.
Pakistani demonstrators chant slogans during a protest against the assassination attempt by the Taliban on Tuesday in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Pakistani activists of the Islamic Sunni Tehreek party carry flags at a rally in Islamabad on Sunday, October 14.
Veiled Pakistani women participate in Sunday's rally.
Supporters of a Pakistani political party, Muttahida Quami Movement, gather during a protest procession for Malala in Karachi, Pakistan, on Sunday.
Pakistani leaders of the movement sit in front of a poster of Malala at a procession on Sunday in Karachi.
A Pakistani youth places an oil lamp next to a photograph of teen activist Malala Yousufzai on Friday, October 12, in Karachi, Pakistan.
Pakistani school girls pray for the recovery of teen activist Malala Yousufzai at their school in Peshawar on Friday.
Pakistani hospital workers carry Malala on a stretcher at a hospital following the attack on Tuesday, October 9. Malala was shot in the head while riding home in a school van in the Taliban-heavy Swat Valley, officials said.
Supporters hold portraits of Malala as they pray for her well-being in Karachi, Pakistan, on Wednesday. Malala gained fame for blogging about how girls should have rights in Pakistan, including the right to learn.
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.
Supporters place candles to pay tribute to Malala in Islamabad on Wednesday.
A Pakistani female activist holds a photograph of Malala and prays for her recovery in Islamabad on Saturday.
Pakistani students pray for Malala at a school in Mingora on Thursday.
Pakistani Muslims bow their heads and pray for Malala during Friday prayers in Karachi.
Pakistani school girls pray for the Malala's recovery on Wednesday. Over the weekend, the teen moved her limbs after doctors "reduced sedation to make a clinical assessment," military spokesman Maj. Gen. Asim Bajwa said.
A Pakistani female covers her face during prayers in Karachi on Wednesday.
Pakistani civil society activists carry banners in Islamabad on Wednesday as they shout ant-Taliban slogans during a protest against the assassination attempt.
Children of Pakistani journalists and civil society activists light candles in Islamabad on Wednesday.
Pakistani Christians attend a mass prayer for the recovery of Malala at Fatima Church in Islamabad on Thursday.
Pakistani Christians attend a mass praying for the recovery of Malala at a church in Lahore on Sunday.
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