British Court Rules To Postpone Assange's Extradition From Britain To US
- 26.03.2024, 15:58
He was given a chance to appeal.
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange will have to wait to see whether he can appeal his extradition to the US after Britain's High Court ruled he cannot be immediately extradited on espionage charges.
This was reported by RBC-Ukraine with a reference to Sky News.
A new hearing will take place in May unless the US gives further assurances about what will happen to him, two High Court judges said.
US prosecutors allege Assange, 52, encouraged and helped US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to steal diplomatic cables and military files that his website published.
However, Assange's supporters say he is a hero being persecuted for exposing US wrongdoing.
In her January 2021 ruling, then-District Judge Vanessa Baraitser said Assange should not be sent to the US, citing a real and “oppressive” risk of suicide, while ruling against him on all other issues.
However, later that year, US authorities won a High Court victory to overturn that decision, paving the way for his extradition.
During a two-day hearing in February, Assange's lawyers asked to be given the opportunity to challenge a judge's decision to dismiss other parts of his case to prevent his extradition.
US persecution of Assange
The United States accuses Julian Assange on 18 counts, including theft of classified information, espionage and conspiracy to hack computer networks. If convicted, he could face up to 175 years in prison.
For seven years — from 2012 to 2019 — the creator of WikiLeaks hid in the Ecuadorian embassy in the UK, which granted him asylum. This allowed him to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he was accused of rape.
In April 2019, a British court found the founder of Wikileaks guilty of failing to appear at a trial in 2012. Ecuadorian authorities allowed British police to enter the embassy and arrest Assange.
The High Court in London subsequently upheld a US appeal against his extradition. In June 2022, British authorities ordered Assange to be deported to the United States.