Sudan Woman Who Faced Religious Execution Lands in Italy

[rug]

July 24, 2014
By Andrew Frye and Ahmed Feteha

Meriam Yehia Ibrahim, the Sudanese woman who had faced execution over her religious beliefs, was escorted from her country on an Italian government plane and received by Pope Francis at the Vatican.

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi was on the tarmac to greet Ibrahim and her family when they stepped off the plane in the morning in Rome. Later in the day, the pope thanked Ibrahim and her husband and children for standing up for their religion.

Ibrahim, 27, was sentenced to death in May after refusing to recant her Christian faith in favor of Islam, sparking condemnation around the globe. After an appeals court canceled the sentence last month, Ibrahim was prevented from leaving Sudan. She was given refuge at the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum with her two children and husband, Daniel Wani, who is a dual South Sudanese and U.S. citizen.

“The pope thanked Meriam and her family for their courageous testimony of unwavering faith,” Federico Lombardi, the Vatican’s spokesman, said today in a statment posted on the Vatican’s website.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-07-24/sudanese-woman-who-faced-execution-for-religion-arrives-in-italy

[cbayer]

1. Good for her and good for him.

Glad I was nowhere near the place. It's an absolute zoo even on a regular day.