The British High Court in London has requested assurances from the U.S. that could allow WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to be extradited from the U.K. to the U.S. to face espionage charges. Last month, the High Court ruled that unless these assurances were provided, Assange would be allowed to appeal against his extradition over WikiLeaks’ publication of classified U.S. military documents 14 years ago. Lawyers for the U.S. were asked to guarantee Assange’s right to free speech during a trial in the U.S. and to ensure that he would not face new charges that could result in the death penalty. The U.S. submitted these guarantees by the deadline, triggering a hearing on May 20 to determine if Assange can indeed be extradited.
According to the document filed by the U.S., Assange, 52, would have the ability to seek and rely upon the rights and protections afforded by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution during his trial. The document also states that the death penalty will not be sought or imposed in Assange’s case. However, Assange’s legal team has expressed skepticism regarding the reliability of these assurances, should their client be extradited. Assange is facing 17 counts under the Espionage Act for allegedly receiving, possessing, and communicating classified information to the public, as well as a charge of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion. If extradited, he would stand trial in Virginia and could potentially face up to 175 years in prison if convicted.
Assange’s family has expressed disappointment with the U.S. assurances, with his wife Stella deeming them as “blatant weasel words” that do not alleviate their distress about his future. Gabriel Shipton, Assange’s brother, called the diplomatic note from the U.S. embassy another grim milestone in the persecution of his brother. However, there is hope on the horizon as U.S. President Joe Biden recently stated that he is considering a plea from Australia to drop the charges against Assange. The decision regarding Assange’s extradition will be made by the British court on May 20, based on the U.S. assurances provided.
Assange has been held at London’s high-security Belmarsh Prison since his removal from the Ecuadorian Embassy in 2019, where he had sought asylum since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations. The sexual assault investigations were eventually dropped. The Obama administration decided not to indict Assange in 2013 over WikiLeaks’ publication of classified cables. President Obama commuted Chelsea Manning’s sentence for violations of the Espionage Act in 2017, and Manning was released that year. However, under the Trump administration, Assange was indicted under the Espionage Act, and the Biden administration continues to pursue his prosecution, despite concerns raised by press freedom groups that criminalizing journalism in this case sets a dangerous precedent.
If the British court rules in favor of Assange’s extradition, his only recourse would be before the European Court of Human Rights. The U.S. Justice Department did not provide a comment on the assurances when contacted by Fox News Digital. When the British court asked the U.S. to provide assurances last month, most of Assange’s appeals were rejected. These included allegations of a political prosecution and concerns about a CIA plot to harm him while he was in the Ecuadorian Embassy. The outcome of the May 20 hearing will have significant implications for Assange’s future and the broader implications for press freedom worldwide.
