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Teddy bear teacher arrives back in Britain: 'I was terrified - but I'm sorry to leave Sudan'
Last updated at 01:22am on 06.12.07Exhausted but relieved, Gillian Gibbons arrived home after her Sudan jail ordeal yesterday.
She joked: "I went out there to have a bit of an adventure and got more of an adventure than I bargained for."
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Relief: Gillian Gibbons with her children John and Jessica
After a reunion with her children John and Jessica at Heathrow, the 54-year-old teacher spoke of her shock and terror after being arrested and accused of insulting Islam for allowing her pupils to call a teddy bear Mohammed.
But despite her ordeal, Mrs Gibbons praised the people of Sudan, stressing that no one should be put off working there.
She even pointed out there was a vacancy for a teacher in her old job.
"I am very sorry to leave," she said.
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Hugs: John and Jessica put their arms round their mother
"I had a fabulous time.
"The Sudanese people I found to be extremely kind and generous. It has been an ordeal but I was well treated in prison and everyone was very kind to me. I never imagined this would happen.
"I am just an ordinary primary school teacher."
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Meetings: Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, right, and Lord Nazir Ahmed travelled to Khartoum to lobby for Miss Gibbons' release
Asked about the teddy bear row, she said: "I don't really know enough about it. It is a very difficult and delicate area. I was very upset to think I might have caused any offence. It has all come as a huge shock to me."
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Talks: Baroness Warsi and Lord Ahmed with Sudanese president Omar al-Basir
Going to prison was 'terrifying', she said, but did not go into detail.
Mrs Gibbons, who could have faced 40 lashes, was pardoned halfway through her 15-day prison sentence by Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir after the intervention of British Muslim peers Lord Ahmed and Baroness Warsi.
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Pardon: Sudanese president Omar al-Basir at a news conference today
"I would like to thank all the people who have worked so hard to secure my release and make my time more bearable," said Mrs Gibbons, a divorcee from Liverpool.
Delighted: Miss GIbbons' son John
Referring to the Unity School in Khartoum where she worked, she said: "I will miss my class and colleagues immensely."
Gordon Brown spoke on the telephone with Mrs Gibbons on her arrival at Heathrow and she praised diplomats for their support.
The arrest had increased pressure on the relationship between London and Khartoum's hard-line Islamic regime, which was already strained following bitter disputes over the Darfur crisis.
Mrs Gibbons said that while in jail she was unaware of the scale of furore surrounding her case.
At one point, thousands of demonstrators, some carrying swords and knives, had demonstrated outside the British Embassy in Khartoum claiming her sentence was too lenient.
Chanting "Shame, shame on the UK", they called for Mrs Gibbons's execution, saying "No tolerance: Execution" and "Kill her, kill her by firing squad".
She said: "I was isolated in custody and didn't really hear what was going on and they didn't allow me many visitors to begin with."
Asked if she was going to continue as a teacher, Mrs Gibbons said Yes and joked: "I'm looking for a job - I am jobless."
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Armed: Protesters carrying swords demand Mrs Gibbons' execution by shouting : 'kill her!'
Fury: A mob of thousands are angry because over Mrs Gibbons' 'lenient' sentence
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