A US court on the US-affiliated Marianas island of Saipan has approved the deal between WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and the US judiciary over espionage charges and ultimately sealed his release. The judge released the 52-year-old and said: “You can walk out of the courtroom a free man.”
As reported, the whistleblower will be released in exchange for an admission of guilt. For a long time, the US judiciary wanted to try Assange on charges of espionage. In the US he could have been jailed for up to 175 years. Instead, he recently struck a deal with the US judiciary and has now pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully obtain and distribute classified documents. According to the BBC and the Guardian, Judge Manglona ruled that the sentence would be the same as the time the internet activist had already spent in a high-security prison in London.
At home
The justice deal spares Assange a trial and possible further prison time in the US. The United States had previously requested his extradition to Britain. Instead, the 52-year-old can now return to his home country. He flew directly from Saipan to Canberra on Wednesday, WikiLeaks announced on the X platform. The Northern Mariana Islands are just a few hours’ flight north of Australia.
Assange’s lawyers called it a “historic day”. “I hope that the fact that we managed to free Julian Assange today, against all odds and against one of the most powerful governments in the world, gives hope to all journalists and publishers imprisoned around the world,” said human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson. “It is appropriate that the judge, as she did today, rule that further detention of Mr. Assange would be neither fair nor appropriate and that the time has come for him to be reunited with his family,” said his lawyer Barry Pollack.
The judicial odyssey began with rape allegations
Assange began his captivity about five years ago in London’s high-security Belmarsh prison. Before his arrest in April 2019, he had evaded law enforcement authorities in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for seven years. They initially targeted him over rape allegations in Sweden. However, these charges were later dropped due to lack of evidence. While the US has been demanding Assange’s extradition for years, human rights groups, journalists’ associations, artists and politicians have called for his immediate release. The Australian government also campaigned for the release of its citizen.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
