British justice allows Assange a new appeal against his extradition to the US.

The High Court of London ruled on Monday in favor of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who will be allowed to appeal his extradition order to the United States, where he is charged with several crimes over the distribution of thousands of secret documents.

Assange’s defense had already requested in February to contest most of the case to prevent his extradition. However, the judges in charge of the case rejected most of the lawyers’ arguments, but did ask the United States for guarantees for the safety of Assange, 52 years old.

Assange’s representatives warned at the hearing that while Joe Biden’s administration offers guarantees, the US Justice Department could enforce the law “regardless of what the executive branch does or says,” according to British news network Sky News.

For his part, the representative of the US government insisted that the US justice system “will take due account of this solemn guarantee given by his government in the course of international relations”.

The UK government already gave the green light to the transfer in June 2022, but Assange, who has taken refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for almost seven years, has tried to block it in every way possible. He is charged with violating the U.S. Espionage Act and faces up to 175 years in prison.

During the hearings in February, lawyers for the Wikileaks founder questioned whether he could receive a fair trial in the United States, claiming that fundamental freedoms are at stake in this trial as Assange’s actions fall within the scope of the journalism would fall and deserve special protection.