Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, has been released after a protracted legal battle that has sparked global discussions on press freedom. Assange, born in Townsville, Australia in July 1971, gained recognition as a skilled computer programmer during his teenage years. In 2006, he founded WikiLeaks, an online platform designed as a secure channel for individuals to leak classified or sensitive information.
The controversy surrounding Assange escalated in April 2010 when WikiLeaks released a video showing a US military helicopter firing upon and killing 11 civilians, including two journalists, during the Iraq war. This revelation shed light on the conduct of the United States’ military operations and generated significant media attention. In the following months, WikiLeaks published over 91,000 secret US military reports on the Afghanistan war, followed by 400,000 classified files documenting the Iraq war and thousands of US diplomatic cables.
Assange’s legal troubles began in August 2010 when Swedish prosecutors issued an arrest warrant based on allegations of rape and molestation. The warrant was later withdrawn due to insufficient evidence, but the rape investigation was reopened in September 2010. Fearing extradition to Sweden, Assange sought refuge in Ecuador’s embassy in London in June 2012 and was granted political asylum in August of the same year.
Over the years, Assange faced various legal challenges. In May 2017, Swedish prosecutors discontinued their investigation, citing the impossibility of proceeding while Assange remained in the Ecuadorian embassy. However, in April 2019, Ecuador revoked his political asylum, leading to his arrest by British authorities. He was subsequently sentenced to 50 weeks in prison for skipping bail.
In June 2019, the US Department of Justice formally requested Assange’s extradition to the US to face charges of conspiring to hack US government computers and violating an espionage law. The extradition hearings began in February 2020 but were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In January 2021, Judge Vanessa Baraitser concluded that extraditing Assange to the US would be oppressive due to his fragile mental health, but denied him bail, considering him a flight risk.
In July 2021, the High Court granted the US government permission to appeal the lower court’s ruling blocking Assange’s extradition. Ecuador also revoked his citizenship in the same month. In December 2021, the High Court ruled that US assurances about Assange’s detention were sufficient to guarantee humane treatment. In June 2022, the British government ordered his extradition to the US, leading to an appeal by Assange.
In May 2023, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called for Assange’s release, stating that his ongoing incarceration served no purpose. In June 2023, a High Court judge ruled that Assange could not appeal his extradition. However, in May 2024, two British judges granted Assange the opportunity to mount a new appeal based on arguments regarding free speech protections and his non-US citizenship.
In a surprising turn of events, the US Justice Department revealed in June 2024 that Assange would be allowed to walk free if he pleaded guilty to an Espionage Act charge of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified national defense information.
