Talks over teacher facing lashes

Gillian Gibbons, 54, allowed her class of seven-year-olds at the Unity High School, Khartoum, to name a teddy bear Mohammed.

If convicted, Ms Gibbons, of Aigburth, Liverpool, could face 40 lashes, a large fine or a jail spell.

The exercise was part of the class's study of animals and their habitats and the name was chosen by the children.

Ms Gibbons, who is being held in a Khartoum prison, was arrested on Sunday after complaints were made - though the naming occurred in September.

Reports given to More4 News on Monday night suggested Ms Gibbons had been charged under sharia law with "insulting ideology and religion".

The mother-of-two moved to Sudan this summer leaving her post as a deputy headteacher at Dovecot Primary School in Liverpool.

Former colleagues and neighbours spoke of their shock on Monday and described Ms Gibbons as innocent and somebody who "wouldn't harm a fly".

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office refused to confirm on Monday night whether Ms Gibbons had been charged.

The British Embassy in Khartoum confirmed officials were helping and had been to visit Ms Gibbons in custody.