WikiLeaks founder and journalist Julian Assange has been granted the right to appeal his extradition order to the U.S. following lengthy proceedings in U.K. courts.
[RELATED: Julian Assange Extradition Halted Unless U.S. Guarantees That He Won’t Face Execution…
“The sun doesn’t shine all that much in London, but today, a glimpse, a sun ray of justice finally finally saw it, and it will mark a path to victory,” said Wikileaks Editor-in-Chief Kristinn Hrafnsson.
“Julian Assange has now the right to appeal, and that in itself should send the right message across the sea to the Biden administration,” he said.
London High Court judges Victoria Sharp and Jeremy Johnson ruled on Monday, after an hours-long hearing, that Assange has the right to a full appeal hearing to challenge his extradition to the U.S.
Hrafnsson warned the Biden Administration that it should pardon Assange now, as it will be the only way for the U.S. to save face when, as Hrafnsson believes he will, Assange wins his appeal.
The decision comes after a different decision by the same judges in March, which delayed the extradition until the U.S. issued assurances that Assange would not face capital punishment, and would be given full First Amendment rights and due process.
The U.S. did issue those assurances in April, but, during Monday’s hearing, Assange’s legal team argued that those assurances are not legally binding, and that Assange would likely not be given First Amendment protections because he is an Australian, rather than an American, citizen.
The judges agreed that the U.S. assurances were insufficient, and granted Assange’s request.
No date has yet been released for Assange’s final extradition hearing.
Assange has spent years in British prison, and attended numerous hearings in the U.K. surrounding his extradition.
In 2021, one U.K. judge ruled that Assange could not be extradited, as he would likely commit suicide in American prison, but that ruling was overturned, and Assange has been fighting extradition since then.
[RELATED: Calls Grow for the Pardon of Julian Assange Before a Potential Extradition to the U.S…]
Assange faces U.S. charges for alleged violations of the Espionage Act, following his publication of numerous classified documents and videos detailing crimes committed by the U.S. government, particularly war crimes committed during the Iraq War.
Defenders of Assange have argued that he did not commit any crime in publishing the classified material because, according to U.S. law, a journalist cannot be prosecuted for publishing classified material if he acquired the material legally.
Even if the person who provided the information to Assange acquired it illegally, Assange would be immune to prosecution given that he was not involved in the illegal acquisition.
Many supporters have called for President Joe Biden to pardon Assange, arguing that the charges constitute an attack on the First Amendment, and could have disastrous implications for journalists across the country.
Many fear that if Assange is ultimately convicted in the U.S., a precedent would be set which would allow the government to prosecute journalists who officials would prefer to silence.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="28069 https://www.themainewire.com/?p=28069">1 Comment
Hopefully Assange can give the corrupt US gov’t the finger. If he prevails it wouldn’t surprise me if he was found dead somewhere shortly thereafter. Sort of like Vince Foster with Hillary Clinton.