ASSANGE EXTRADITION TO STAND TRIAL IN AMERICA..."Land-of-The-Free" and "Home-of-The-Brave"

Intro: The saga was triggered in 2010 when WikiLeaks published a series of leaks by Chelsea Manning, a former US army soldier, as well as a dump of more than 250,000 US diplomatic cables, some of which were published in the Guardian and elsewhere, containing classified diplomatic analysis from world leaders. The US government launched a criminal investigation into the leaks. . .

“US authorities are determined to silence him because they don’t like what he revealed.”

. . .On 17 June, following consideration by both the magistrates court and high court, the extradition of Mr Julian Assange to the US was ordered. Mr Assange retains the normal 14-day right to appeal.

Julian Assange’s extradition from UK to US approved by home secretary

(Supporters of Julian Assange demonstrating outside the Home Office on 17 May calling on Priti Patel to refuse the US extradition order. Photograph: Anadolu Agency)

 

Jamie Grierson

the Guardian |

Appeal likely after Priti Patel gives green light to extradition of WikiLeaks co-founder

"Priti Patel has approved the extradition of the WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange to the US, a decision the organisation immediately said it would appeal against in the high court.

The case passed to the home secretary last month after the supreme court ruled there were no legal questions over assurances given by US authorities over how Assange was likely to be treated.

While Patel has given a green light, WikiLeaks immediately released a statement to say it would appeal against the decision. . ."

Continue reading >> https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/jun/17/julian-assange-extradition-to-us-approved-by-priti-patel 

Here are extracts from a report in Forbes

Julian Assange’s Extradition To The U.S. Approved By U.K. Government

Siladitya RayForbes StaffCovering breaking news and tech policy stories at Forbes.

Forbes | 2022-06-17

U.K. Home Secretary Priti Patel on Friday approved the extradition of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange to the U.S.—where he faces multiple criminal charges and possible life imprisonment—in a decision that is likely to draw opposition from human rights and press freedom activists around the world.

In a statement released on Twitter, Wikileaks said: “This is a dark day for Press freedom and for British democracy. Anyone in this country who cares about freedom of expression should be deeply ashamed that the Home Secretary has approved the extradition of Julian Assange to the United States, the country that plotted his assassination. Julian did nothing wrong... he is being punished for doing his job.”

The 50-year-old Wikileaks founder faces multiple criminal charges in the U.S. . .

Chief Critic

In a statement released on Twitter, Wikileaks said: “This is a dark day for Press freedom and for British democracy. Anyone in this country who cares about freedom of expression should be deeply ashamed that the Home Secretary has approved the extradition of Julian Assange to the United States, the country that plotted his assassination. Julian did nothing wrong... he is being punished for doing his job.”

Key Background

The 50-year-old Wikileaks founder faces multiple criminal charges in the U.S. linked to his website’s release of confidential U.S. military documents and diplomatic cables. U.S. authorities also allege that Assange breached espionage laws by helping former U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning crack a U.S. Department of Defense computer. If found guilty, Assange could face up to 175 years in prison. Assange has denied allegations that he worked with Manning and has claimed the allegations against him are politically motivated due to Wikileaks' disclosure of war crimes and human rights abuses by the U.S. government.

Further Reading

Julian Assange can be extradited, says UK home secretary (BBC News)

Julian Assange: Government approves extradition of WikiLeaks founder to the US (Sky News)