(ReclaimingAmerica.net) – Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, who has been locked up for years in the United Kingdom while the United States of America has sought his extradition to face trial on multiple charges involving espionage, has received news about his fate.
Today, a British judge approved Julian Assange’s extradition, and the WikiLeaks founder could soon be facing espionage charges in the US.
A judge at London’s Westminster Magistrates Court issued the extradition order. Assange viewed the proceedings via a video link from Belmarsh Prison.
Under applicable law, the case will now be sent to Britain’s interior minister for a ruling, while Assange still has legal recourses.
Priti Patel, the UK’s Home Secretary, will decide whether or not to allow extradition.
Assange was previously denied permission by the UK Supreme Court to appeal against a lower court ruling that he could be extradited, so the order of extradition is now in effect.
Assange’s legal options are not totally exhausted by the court’s move today, but his likelihood of success is dwindling quickly.
Assange has been trying for years to avoid a US trial on 17 charges of espionage and one for computer misuse in connection to WikiLeak’s publication of an enormous trove of classified documents over a decade ago.
American prosecutors claim that Assange illegally assisted Chelsea Manning, an intelligence analyst in the US Army, to steal classified diplomatic cables and military documents. These files were published by WikiLeaks later, and the government argues WikiLeaks put lives at risk.
Lawyers and supporters of Assange claim that he was acting as a journalist and therefore entitled to First Amendment freedom of speech protections for publishing documents that exposed US military wrongdoings in Iraq and Afghanistan. They claim that Assange’s case is motivated by political motives.
Bottom line: Assange is one step closer to facing an American jury on spying charges.
JUST IN – UK court has issued an order to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the United States.
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) April 20, 2022
