Freed Sudanese Christian expected in US this week

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — The New Hampshire brother-in-law of Meriam Ibrahim, the Sudanese woman once sentenced to death for refusing to recant her Christian faith, says she and her family will probably fly from Rome to the United States this week.

Gabriel Wani, whose brother is an American citizen, says they’ve spoken by phone several times since the family flew from Sudan to Italy last Thursday.

Wani says they’ll probably visit Washington D.C. first to thank everyone who fought for their release, and then settle in Manchester, where a Sudanese Christian community and church are eager to welcome them.

Ibrahim, the daughter of a Muslim father and a Christian mother, had faced execution for apostasy because she married a Christian. She gave birth to a daughter while she and her toddler son were in prison. Her conviction was overturned on appeal, but she and her family were prevented from leaving Sudan until last week.

Wani says they’re all well now and looking forward to starting a new life in America.

Sound: Upcoming

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