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Sudan death row woman Meriam Ibrahim freed again | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
A Sudanese woman freed from death row on Monday has been released again after being briefly detained with her family at Khartoum airport. | |
Meriam Ibrahim was sentenced in May to hang for renouncing Islam, sparking widespread outrage at home and abroad. | Meriam Ibrahim was sentenced in May to hang for renouncing Islam, sparking widespread outrage at home and abroad. |
About 40 security agents detained Mrs Ibrahim - along with her husband, Daniel Wani and two children - at the airport, the sources said. | About 40 security agents detained Mrs Ibrahim - along with her husband, Daniel Wani and two children - at the airport, the sources said. |
But Sudan has told the US that she and her family have now been released. | |
"They were temporarily detained for several hours over questions related to their documents," Marie Harf, a spokeswoman for the US State department, told journalists. | |
Sudan's government had assured the US that Mrs Ibrahim and her family were safe, Ms Harf added. | |
She said the US is working with Sudan to ensure their safe passage out of the country. | |
Earlier, a top Sudanese official told the BBC that although Mrs Ibrahim is Sudanese, she was using emergency South Sudanese papers with a US visa. | |
She would be asked to get a passport and exit visa on her release, Abdullahi Alzareg from the ministry of foreign affairs said. | |
Mrs Ibrahim's husband is a Christian from what is now South Sudan and has US nationality. | Mrs Ibrahim's husband is a Christian from what is now South Sudan and has US nationality. |
One of Mrs Ibrahim's lawyers, el-Shareef Ali, told the BBC that her legal team had been denied access to her. | |
Analysis: James Copnall, former BBC Sudan correspondent | Analysis: James Copnall, former BBC Sudan correspondent |
The National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) is an extremely powerful body, which frequently intervenes in Sudanese politics. | The National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) is an extremely powerful body, which frequently intervenes in Sudanese politics. |
It is a key part of the informal coalition - also comprising the military, Islamists and pragmatists - which rules Sudan. | It is a key part of the informal coalition - also comprising the military, Islamists and pragmatists - which rules Sudan. |
The different components are constantly jockeying for a better position. | The different components are constantly jockeying for a better position. |
In recent times, NISS has been flexing its muscles. | In recent times, NISS has been flexing its muscles. |
It is very possible that NISS did not like the decision to release Meriam Ibrahim, and re-arresting her and her family was a way of making this point to the rest of the Sudanese government. | It is very possible that NISS did not like the decision to release Meriam Ibrahim, and re-arresting her and her family was a way of making this point to the rest of the Sudanese government. |
However, security is not a homogenous entity either. | However, security is not a homogenous entity either. |
It is also conceivable that one part of NISS accepted Mrs Ibrahim's release, while another section was not happy with it. | It is also conceivable that one part of NISS accepted Mrs Ibrahim's release, while another section was not happy with it. |
Mrs Ibrahim's release and re-arrest simply underlines the fact that there are many decision-makers in Sudanese politics, and they do not always agree with each other. | Mrs Ibrahim's release and re-arrest simply underlines the fact that there are many decision-makers in Sudanese politics, and they do not always agree with each other. |
She was released from prison on Monday after an appeal court annulled the death sentence imposed on her. | |
She was arrested in February, and gave birth to a daughter in prison not long after being sentenced. | |
Before she was detained on Tuesday, Western countries had welcomed the decision to rescind the death penalty. | |
Born to a Muslim father, Mrs Ibrahim, 27, married Mr Wani in 2011. | Born to a Muslim father, Mrs Ibrahim, 27, married Mr Wani in 2011. |
Sudan has a majority Muslim population, and Islamic law has been in force there since the 1980s. | Sudan has a majority Muslim population, and Islamic law has been in force there since the 1980s. |
Even though Mrs Ibrahim was brought up as an Orthodox Christian, the authorities considered her to be a Muslim because that is the religion of her father. | Even though Mrs Ibrahim was brought up as an Orthodox Christian, the authorities considered her to be a Muslim because that is the religion of her father. |