A British court blocked the extradition of Julian Assange to the U.S. on Tuesday, refusing to let the controversial publisher possibly face the death penalty.
The U.S. has been trying to get its hands on Assange since he published classified military documents on WikiLeaks in 2010, and the U.K. government had already approved his extradition.
But Assange, 52, launched a last-ditch appeal in February to the High Court of Justice in London. Assange made nine arguments in his appeal, and the judges agreed with three of them: the threat to Assange’s freedom of speech, Assange’s claim that he is at a disadvantage as an Australian citizen, and the risk he could receive the death penalty.
The judges allowed the U.S. to provide assurances that it would not execute Assange should he be convicted. Another hearing was set for May 20, and Assange was hauled back to London’s high-security Belmarsh Prison.
Assange’s legal saga has now lasted nearly 15 years. His supporters argue that he is a brave truth-teller, publishing facts about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that the U.S. government wanted hidden from the public eye.
The feds have claimed Assange went beyond journalistic norms and endangered many people, including locals who helped U.S. forces in the two wars. He faces 17 counts under the Espionage Act and up to 175 years in prison.
“The Biden administration should not issue assurances. They should drop this shameful case, which should never have been brought,” Assange’s wife, Stella Assange, said outside the High Court on Tuesday.
Assange was first arrested in London in 2010, after two women in Sweden accused him of rape and sexual assault. In 2012, he jumped bail and hid out in the Ecuadorian embassy. Assange remained there for seven years, until his hosts kicked him out in April 2019 for being extremely annoying.
London police immediately arrested Assange, and he has spent the past five years in prison. The charges in Sweden have since been dropped.
With News Wire Services
