The woman had been sentenced to death by hanging for converting to Christianity, but now will go free after the sentence sparked international outrage.
A 27-year-old Sudanese woman facing the death penalty for refusing to abandon Christianity will now be freed, according to multiple reports Sunday. Mariam Yahya Ibrahim — who gave birth to a girl while in prison — should be free within a few days, according Sudanese officials who spoke with the BBC.
Ibrahim also was facing 100 lashes for adultery as a result of marrying a Christian man. The sentence was handed down last month by a Sudanese court, which gave Ibrahim an ultimatum: convert to Islam or hang. Ibrahim told the court "I am a Christian," and was subsequently sentenced to die. She was eight months pregnant at the time.
The case stemmed from a Sudanese law requiring children to follow their father's faith. Ibrahim's father is a Muslim, though she was predominantly raised by her mother, an Orthodox Christian. After the sentence was handed down, Ibrahim's lawyers vowed to fight it.
Ibrahim's lawyers told Reuters that neither they nor her husband had been notified of her release.
The sentence prompted an international outcry, with the British Prime Minister David Cameron calling it "barbaric."
Sudan is one of 13 countries with death sentences for apostasy. Others include Afghanistan, Iran, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Nigeria, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
from BuzzFeed - Breaking http://ift.tt/1hqn6fj
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