SAN DIEGO (AP) — A woman who fled war-torn Somalia as a child was sentenced Tuesday to eight years in prison for sending $1,450 to members of a terrorist organization in her native country.

Nima Ali Yusuf, 26, turned her chair in a San Diego courtroom to an audience packed with dozens of family and supporters, choking back tears as she declared, “God bless you and do not give up on me.” In a letter to the judge, she insisted she wasn’t a terrorist and said her contributions were motivated by a desire to provide food and medical care for those in need.