Julian Assange Last Stand: Whistleblower Fights Extradition in Final Appeal
It’s do or die time for infamous whistleblower Julian Assange as he mounts one last legal challenge to prevent his extradition across the pond. After years battling the US government from both the safety of the Ecuadorian embassy in London and the walls of a high-security British prison, Assange’s fate now rests with two judges during a two-day hearing.
If unsuccessful, the 52-year-old WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange could find himself on a one-way flight to America within a month to face the music for his role in leaking thousands of classified documents via his website over a decade ago. The Americans want him to answer to 18 criminal charges, including conspiracy to commit computer intrusion, that threaten to put him away for good if convicted.
Julian Assange lawyers plan to argue that sending their client stateside would breach a key clause in the UK-US extradition treaty prohibiting the deportation of individuals for political offenses. They maintain the prosecution has purely political motivations aimed at punishing Assange for embarrassing the United States with his publications. However, representatives for Uncle Sam will counter tomorrow that he endangered national security and needs to be held accountable under US law.
The Long Road
It’s been a wild ride to get to this point. After first gaining notoriety in 2010, Julian Assange holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in 2012 to avoid separate sexual assault allegations in Sweden, which have since been dropped. British police finally dragged him out in April 2019 following the South American country’s withdrawal of asylum. He served 50 weeks in jail for breaching bail conditions before judges blocked an earlier extradition bid due to concerns over his mental health and prison conditions across the pond. But American authorities persisted and successfully overturned that decision on appeal.
Now, Julian Assange legal squad will try to convince the High Court their client deserves one last shot at avoiding extradition on the grounds it would set a troubling precedent for press freedoms worldwide. A decision against the controversial publisher means the final hurdle to shipping him to a US supermax prison will be cleared. With his physical and mental well-being said to be declining after years locked up, supporters argue the stress of American justice could even end his life. The judgment of the two judges this week may determine Assange’s fate once and for all.
