THE Sudanese woman imprisoned for refusing to reject Christianity has said she was resolved to keep her faith even if it meant death.
Meriam Ibrahim, who now lives in Manchester, New Hampshire, America, was sentenced to death over charges of apostasy, the abandonment of a religion.
Her father was Muslim and her mother was an Orthodox Christian. She married Daniel Wani, a Christian from southern Sudan, in 2011.
Muslim women in Sudan are prohibited from marrying non-Muslims, and children must follow their father's religion.
In a television interview, Ms Ibrahim said she was given three days to recant her faith after being found guilty.
She said: "I faced a tremendous amount of pressure. I had my trust in God. My faith was the only weapon I had in confrontations with imams and Muslim scholars (in prison), because that is what I believe."
Sudan initially blocked Ms Ibrahim from leaving the country even after its highest court overturned her death sentence in June.
The family took refuge at the US Embassy in Khartoum and travelled to Manchester, north of Boston, on August 1.
Ms Ibrahim was pregnant during her imprisonment and said her daughter Maya was born under difficult conditions.
She said: "I had to give birth with chains on my ankles."
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