SYDNEY, Australia: Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has reiterated his call for an end to Julian Assange’s imprisonment, following the UK High Court’s decision to temporarily halt the WikiLeaks founder’s extradition to the United States.
Assange, who has been detained in London’s high-security Belmarsh prison since April 2019, now has permission to appeal the extradition decision. This development frustrates Washington’s efforts to try the 52-year-old Australian for leaking US military secrets.
Prime Minister Albanese emphasized the futility of Assange’s continued incarceration, stating there is “nothing to be served” by his ongoing detention. He assured reporters that Australia is working closely to achieve a resolution, declaring “enough is enough.”
The granted appeal will focus narrowly on whether Assange will receive free speech protections as a foreigner under the US legal system. Despite the UK government’s approval of his extradition in June 2022, Assange’s legal battle continues.
Earlier this year, Albanese expressed his frustration with the prolonged prosecution, asserting that it “cannot just go on and on indefinitely.”
Assange faces charges for publishing approximately 700,000 confidential documents related to US military and diplomatic activities, starting in 2010. These leaks exposed sensitive information about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, prompting US authorities to seek his trial.
After spending seven years in asylum at Ecuador’s London embassy, Assange was arrested in 2019 and has remained in custody since. The ongoing legal saga and international debate over his fate continue to draw significant attention and concern.
