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Julian Assange: WikiLeaks founder given disproportionate sentence for ‘minor’ crime, UN legal experts claim | The Independent

Julian Assange was given a “disproportionate” sentence for a bail violation, the United Nations has said as it accused British authorities of breaching his human rights. The WikiLeaks founder ​was handed a 50-week sentence earlier this week and is being held at Belmarsh Prison in southeast London. He is fighting an extradition request made by the US over an alleged hacking conspiracy. The UN Working Group on […]

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Pamela Anderson visits WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in prison, wrapped in grey ‘free speech’ blanket | The Independent

Speaking to reporters after the visit, Ms Anderson said it was “very difficult” to see Assange in prison. “He does not deserve to be in a supermax prison. He has never committed a violent act. He is an innocent person,” she said. She said that Assange has no access to information, is “really cut off from […]

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Pamela Anderson defends Julian Assange in emotional essay

Pamela Anderson has written an essay on her website in defence of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is currently facing detention from Swedish prosecutors over a rape allegation first made against him in 2010. Anderson has been vocal about her support for Assange, who she described as “an innocent person” when she visited him in prison earlier this month, wrapped in a grey […]

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As an American lawyer, I don’t want to see Julian Assange extradited to my country | The Independent

You don’t have to like Julian Assange’s politics or his personality to understand that if he is extradited to the United States, not only does he face a de facto life sentence, but every journalist who receives and publishes classified information faces such jeopardy as well.  As the Knight First Amendment Institute tweeted, “The government […]

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Julian Assange moved to medical wing in prison due to ‘significantly deteriorated’ health | The Independent

Julian Assange has been moved to a medical care area in Belmarsh prison following “dramatic” weight loss, Wikileaks has claimed. Following his arrest at Ecuador’s embassy Assange’s “health has continued to deteriorate and he has dramatically lost weight” in prison, the group said. Source: Julian Assange moved to medical wing in prison due to ‘significantly deteriorated’ health | The Independent

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Julian Assange hearing: WikiLeaks founder fails to appear in court over ‘grave concerns’ for health | The Independent

Julian Assange has failed to appear in court – in person or by video link – for a hearing on his extradition to the US because he is too ill, amid “grave concerns” for his health. The Wikileaks founder was due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday. The five-minute hearing went ahead in his […]

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Julian Assange has been ‘psychologically tortured’ and must not be extradited to US, says UN expert | The Independent

Julian Assange has been “psychologically tortured” and should not be extradited to the US, a United Nations official has said. Nils Melzer, the UN special rapporteur on torture, said the WikiLeaks founder would not receive a fair trial after visiting him in a British prison. He said that although Assange was not being held in solitary confinement at […]

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America’s persecution of Julian Assange has everything to do with Yemen | The Independent

I was in Kabul a decade ago when WikiLeaks released a massive tranche of US government documents about the conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq and Yemen. On the day of the release, I was arranging by phone to meet an American official for an unattributable briefing. I told him in the course of our conversation what I had just learned from the news wires. […]

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Julian Assange: US submits formal extradition request for WikiLeaks founder | The Independent

The US Justice Department has delivered to officials in the United Kingdom a formal extradition request for Julian Assange, making further US charges against the WikiLeaks founder unlikely. A US official who spoke on background to discuss a sensitive matter said the request was sent on Thursday. The United States’ treaty with Britain required that the request be sent within 60 days […]

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Julian Assange: Extradition order signed by home secretary ahead of WikiLeaks founder’s court hearing | The Independent

A request to extradite Julian Assange to the US has been signed by the home secretary but must still be approved by a judge on Friday before the WikiLeaks founder can be sent to face trial in America. Sajid Javid said he had signed the extradition order but maintained it was a “decision ultimately for the courts”. … At a previous hearing […]