WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today issued the following statement regarding Meriam Yahia Ibrahim’s safe exit from Sudan:

“I am delighted to hear that Ms. Ibrahim and her family are safely out of Sudan,” Wicker said. “I commend those officials at the State Department, as well as the Italian government, who worked day and night to negotiate their safe release. I look forward to welcoming the Ibrahim family to the United States.”

Ms. Ibrahim is the wife of U.S. citizen Daniel Wani. They have two children. Their son, Martin, was imprisoned with Ms. Ibrahim, and their daughter was born in prison. On May 11, 2014, a Sudan court sentenced Ms. Ibrahim to death for being a Christian. In June, a Sudanese appeals court reversed the ruling. The family has been residing in the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum for more than a month.

In June, Wicker led a bipartisan letter to Secretary of State John Kerry calling for the release of Ibrahim. Wicker is also a cosponsor of legislation that will grant Ibrahim and her children permanent legal status in the United States.