File photo shows the couple with two of their adopted children, Gloria and one of their two sons
An American couple charged with starving to death their adopted daughter is asking a Qatar court to release them from prison as they pursue their legal battle, insisting their African-born child died of medical problems complicated by her anorexia-like bouts.
The case has brought assistance from U.S.-based groups and highlights possible cultural misunderstandings in a Gulf nation unfamiliar with adoption and cross-cultural families.
Matthew and Grace Huang's lawyers on Wednesday asked for their release and brought witnesses who testified that 8-year-old Gloria appeared healthy and active just days before her death in January.
Prosecutors allege the couple denied food to their daughter, who was born in Ghana and adopted at age 4.
They couple moved from California in 2012, after Matthew Huang took a job on water projects in Qatar.