Wikileaks came into prominence after it published a series of leaks related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The information was given to Assange by former US army analyst Chelsea Manning
Supporters of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange are staging events to call for his release to mark the 1,000 days he has spent in prison.
According to a report by The Independent, the campaigners will gather outside London’s Belmarsh prison, where Assange is currently held as the United States continues its attempts to extradite him.
Speaking to The Independent, Assange’s fianc?, Stella Morris renewed her calls for the Wikileaks founder’s release, stating that he had served more time in Belmarsh than many prisoners who were sentenced for violent crimes.
Morris also asserted that Assange was being held in jail “at the request of the US government while they continue to abuse the US-UK extradition treaty for political ends.” In December 2021, the High Court ruled that Assange could be extradited to the US. This comes in contrast to a UK’s court’s verdict last year that the 50-year-old could not be extradited because of concerns over his mental health. The US had appealed against the verdict in the High Court, which later stated that Assange could be extradited.
Morris described her fianc? as a “political prisoner” and claimed that he would die because of his “indefinite incarceration” unless it was brought to an end. She also claimed that Assange would be tried by USA’s national security court and given a 175-year sentence for “doing his job”.
According to the BBC, the US government claims that the 50-year-old will likely be sentenced between four to six years in prison.
Wikileaks came into prominence after it published a series of leaks related to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The information was given to Assange by former US army analyst Chelsea Manning.
According to the US government, the leaks endangered several lives, prompting it to seek his extradition from the UK. Assange sought political asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in London in 2012 as he was facing extradition to Sweden on sexual assault charges. The case was later dropped.
From 2012 to 2019, Assange remained at the embassy until he was arrested in April that year. The Wikileaks founder was jailed for 50 weeks for breaching his bail conditions while going into hiding at the embassy.
He remains in prison as he fights against his extradition to the US due to his history of absconding.