Advertisement

Sudanese court issues death sentence to Christian woman for renouncing father's Muslim faith

27-year-old Meriam Yehya Ibrahim, raised a Christian by her mother, was sentenced to death on Thursday by a Sudanese court that found her guilty of renouncing her father's Muslim faith.

By JC Finley

KHARTOUM, Sudan, May 15 (UPI) -- A 27-year-old Christian woman has been convicted by a Sudanese court of apostasy for allegedly renouncing her father's Muslim religion, and was sentenced to death on Thursday.

Meriam Yehya Ibrahim, eight months pregnant and the mother of a 20-month-old child, was also convicted of adultery for marrying a non-Muslim man, and sentenced to flogging.

Advertisement

The judge ruled that she will die by hanging for renouncing the Muslim faith of her father. Ibrahim's father left his family when she was six years old, and Ibrahim was raised a Christian by her mother.

The U.S. Department of State denounced the court ruling, saying it was "deeply disturbed" by the harsh sentencing, and expressed hope for an appeal.

The U.S., British, Canadian, and Dutch embassies called on the Sudanese government "to respect the right to freedom of religion, a right enshrined in Sudan's own 2005 Interim Constitution as well as international human rights law."

Latest Headlines