U.S. couple free to leave Qatar, The U.S. ambassador to Qatar said an American couple recently cleared in the death of their 8-year-old adopted daughter is free to leave the Persian Gulf nation Wednesday.
Ambassador Dana Shell Smith made the announcement Tuesday on Twitter: "Update: just informed by GoQ (Government of Qatar) that all requirements met, no further appeal, travel ban to be lifted. Huangs can go tomorrow."
A Qatari appeals court on Sunday cleared Matthew and Grace Huang of Los Angeles in the January 2013 death of their daughter Gloria, who was born in Ghana. The couple was told they were free to leave the country, but their passports were confiscated as they tried to pass through airport immigration control in the capital, Doha.
Family spokesman Eric Volz said the Huangs "are eager to get home to Los Angeles," in a statement posted to the web site of the David House International Crisis Agency. "The delays over the last three days have been difficult."
The Huangs were found guilty of child endangerment and sentenced to three years in prison in March of this year, but were free on bail pending the appeal.
A doctor in Qatar who conducted Gloria's autopsy determined that dehydration and wasting disease were the cause of death.
The Huangs said Gloria died of medical problems complicated by unusual eating habits that included periods of binging and self-starvation. Prosecutors alleged she died after being denied food and locked in her room.
Matthew Huang had been working in the booming, energy-rich nation as part of infrastructure improvements for Qatar's hosting of the 2022 World Cup.
The couple have two other African-born adopted children. Originally, the Huangs were jailed on murder charges. An appeals judge overturned their conviction.
Secretary of State John Kerry said this week the U.S. was "deeply concerned" that their departure had been delayed.