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A judge approves the extradition order for Julian Assange to the US and refers it to the British Government

2022-04-20T15:08:11.677Z


The British Home Secretary will have two months, which can be extended, to decide whether to confirm or reject the order. The Australian's defense will appeal the decision.


By Jill Lawless

Associated Press

LONDON — A British judge on Wednesday officially authorized the extradition of Julian Assange to the United States to face charges of espionage.

The case will now go to the UK Home Office for a decision and the WikiLeaks founder still has legal options to appeal.

The British Supreme Court last month refused to authorize an appeal by Assange against a lower court ruling that he could be extradited.

[A British court rejects the extradition of Julian Assange to the US, where he faces espionage charges]

Judge Paul Goldspring of Westminster Magistrates Court issued the order in a brief hearing that Assange followed by videoconference from Belmarsh prison.

Assange's supporters demonstrated outside the court to demand her release.

Home Secretary Priti Patel will decide whether to authorize the extradition.

An image of Julian Assange in Leake Street, central London, on Sunday, April 10, 2022, to mark three years since his detention at Belmarsh Prison, as the United States continues its legal process to seek his extradition.Victoria Jones/AP

The ruling is another step toward extradition but it does not exhaust legal options for Assange, who has spent years trying to avoid a trial in the United States on charges related to WikiLeaks publishing a huge batch of classified documents more than a decade ago.

His lawyers have four weeks to present allegations to Patel and can also appeal to the High Court.

Assange's lawyer Mark Summers told the court that the legal team would hand over "serious" documents.

[Julian Assange fights in the UK against his extradition to the US.

His lawyers seek to delay the case]

The United States has asked British authorities to extradite Assange to stand trial on 17 counts of espionage and a computer crime.

US prosecutors say Assange illegally helped US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning steal classified diplomatic dispatches and military files that WikiLeaks later released, putting lives in danger.

Supporters and lawyers for the 50-year-old Assange allege that when he published documents exposing US military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan, he was acting as a journalist and is entitled to free speech protections under the First Amendment to the US Constitution.

They claim that her case is politically motivated.

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A British district judge initially rejected the extradition request on the grounds that Assange would likely kill himself if held in harsh prison conditions in the United States.

US authorities later provided assurances that the WikiLeaks founder would not suffer harsh treatment, which his lawyers say would have endangered his physical and mental health.

The High Court reversed that decision in December, saying US promises were enough to ensure humane treatment of Assange.

The Supreme Court in March rejected an attempt by Assange to appeal that decision.

[British court denies Julian Assange parole due to flight risk]

If convicted in the United States, he could face up to 175 years in prison, according to Assange's lawyers, though US authorities have said the sentence would likely be much less.

Assange has been held in London's high-security Belmarsh Prison since 2019, when he was arrested for breaching bail in another legal battle.

Before that he spent seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid his extradition to Sweden, where he was facing charges of rape and sexual assault.

Sweden shelved the sex crime cases in November 2019 because too much time had passed.

Assange and his partner, Stella Moris, were married last month in a prison ceremony.

Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2022-04-20

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