Starvation girl couple to appeal

The mother and stepfather of a seven-year-old girl who starved to death have been given the go-ahead to appeal against their sentences.

Angela Gordon, 35, and her former partner Junaid Abuhamza, 31, were jailed at Birmingham Crown Court in March for the manslaughter of Khyra Ishaq.

The youngster died in May 2008 when her body succumbed to an infection after months of starvation in Handsworth, Birmingham.

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Mr Justice Roderick Evans sentenced Gordon to 15 years and jailed Abuhamza indefinitely for the public's protection, with a minimum term of seven-and-a-half years, branding their treatment of the child "chilling in its harshness and cruelty".

Gordon and Abuhamza later applied to the Court of Appeal for leave to challenge their sentences. It was confirmed yesterday that a judge has granted permission after reviewing the papers.

Their full appeals will be heard by judges at the Court of Appeal in London.

During the trial, jurors heard that Khyra and five other children were subject to a regime of cruelty that included being deprived of food and being locked out of a fully stocked kitchen.

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