Sudanese ‘apostasy’ woman spared death arrives in Italy, meets pope

A Sudanese woman who was sentenced to death for refusing to recant her Christian faith before being freed but barred from travel has arrived in Italy en route to the United States, officials said Thursday.

Meriam Ibrahim, whose sentence and detention triggered international outrage, walked off the aircraft cradling the baby she had in prison and was greeted by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. She later met with Pope Francis.

Ibrahim, 27, whose father was Muslim but whose mother was an Orthodox Christian from Ethiopia, was accompanied by her husband, who is a citizen of the U.S. and South Sudan, her 18-month-old son and an infant born on May 27. 

There were no details on what led up to the 27-year-old's departure after a month in limbo in Khartoum, but a senior Sudanese official said it had been cleared by the government.

"The authorities did not prevent her departure that was known and approved in advance," the senior official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Ibrahim and her family are expected to spend a few days in Rome before heading to the U.S. An Italian diplomat who accompanied the family from Sudan said Italy leveraged its historic ties within the Horn of Africa region to help win her release.

Meanwhile, Pope Francis met privately with her on Thursday.

The Vatican said Pope Francis had "a very affectionate" meeting with Ibrahim, her husband and their two small children. 

Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi said the pope "thanked her for her faith and courage, and she thanked him for his prayer and solidarity" during the half-hour meeting Thursday.

A global outcry erupted in May after Ibrahim was sentenced to hang for apostasy. The court had also sentenced her to 100 lashings.

Days after her conviction, she gave birth to a second child in prison.

Ibrahim’s conviction was overturned in June, but she was immediately rearrested while trying to leave Sudan using what prosecutors claimed were forged documents.

Two days later, Ibrahim was released from prison and she and her family took refuge in the U.S. Embassy.

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Khartoum says Ibrahim joined the Catholic Church shortly before she married in 2011. 

The case raised questions of religious freedom in mostly Muslim Sudan and sparked vocal protests from Western governments and human rights groups.

The case has refocused attention on a country that has slipped from the international spotlight but where an 11-year-old war continues, with millions of people in need of humanitarian aid.

Wire services