Julian Assange Free: Latest News & Updates
- WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been released from a British prison after spending 1,901 days behind bars.
- Assange's release and plea deal mark the end of a long legal battle.
- The plea agreement was finalized in a court in Saipan, northern Mariana Islands, a U.S.
julian Assange Pleads Guilty to Espionage Charge, Set to Return to Australia
Updated June 25, 2024
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been released from a British prison after spending 1,901 days behind bars. he is expected to return to his native Australia after pleading guilty to a single count of conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defense facts in a deal with the U.S. Justice Department.
Assange’s release and plea deal mark the end of a long legal battle. He had been fighting extradition to the U.S., where he faced charges related to WikiLeaks’ publication of classified military and diplomatic documents.
The plea agreement was finalized in a court in Saipan, northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory. Assange acknowledged violating the espionage statute, though he stated his belief that the First Amendment and the Espionage Act are contradictory.
”I accept it’s a violation of the espionage statute,” he continued. “I believe the First Amendment and the Espionage Act are in contradiction with each other, but I accept that it would be difficult to win such a case given all the circumstances.”
As part of the agreement, Assange is required to instruct WikiLeaks to destroy classified information on its servers. U.S. prosecutors have stated they are satisfied Assange has complied.
Stella Assange, Assange’s wife, shared a video of his arrival at the courthouse, noting the sensory overload he must be experiencing after years of confinement.
“I watch this and think how overloaded his senses must be, walking through the press scrum after years of sensory deprivation and the four walls of his high security Belmarsh prison cell,” she wrote on X.
pink Floyd’s Roger Waters,a longtime advocate for Assange’s release,expressed his hope that Assange would return to journalism after regaining his health.
“You know what I’d like to see? You old mucker, I’d like to see you back at work at WikiLeaks. Somebody has to pick up the cudgels and keep up the amazing, brilliant work that you did,” Waters said in a video.
What’s next
With the legal proceedings concluded,Julian Assange is expected to return to Australia,marking the end of a protracted legal and political saga surrounding the WikiLeaks founder and his organization’s controversial publications.