The WikiLeaks founder was jailed for five years in a maximum security prison near London. Now he has reached an agreement with the US Department of Justice and pleaded guilty in part.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is free, according to disclosure site WikiLeaks. Assange was released from a high-security prison near London, where he had been incarcerated for five years, and Great Britain, the disclosure site said on Tuesday night. According to court documents, it was previously known that Assange had agreed to plead guilty to the US Department of Justice.
Assange reached a plea deal with the US Justice Department under which he would plead guilty to part of the espionage charge in exchange for further imprisonment in the US. According to court documents, the 52-year-old Australian has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to obtain and distribute classified US security documents. However, a court must still approve the contract.
Court date in the Mariana Islands
Assange is scheduled to appear before a court this Wednesday in a remote US territory: the Mariana Islands. Located in the western Pacific north of Assange’s home country of Australia, the archipelago is under US sovereignty. Then he has to go to Australia. According to American media, Assange will be sentenced to five years in prison – he has already served in Great Britain.
In a video, Julian Assange called on his supporters to help the WikiLeaks founder after his wife was released. “We intend to set up an emergency fund for Julian’s health and recovery,” Stella Assange said in a clip posted to YouTube on Tuesday night. “I’m asking you to contribute and help Julien’s transition to this new phase if you can.” The video, recorded on June 19, shows Stella Assange standing in front of London’s Belmarsh Prison, where Assange has been imprisoned for more than five years. WikiLeaks boss Kristinn Hrafnsson says: “If you see this, it means he’s out,” it said.
“My son’s sacrifice finally comes to an end”
Australian broadcaster ABC quoted Tuesday from a statement by the mother of WikiLeaks founder Christine Assange, saying: “I am grateful that my son’s sacrifice has finally come to an end. It shows how important and powerful quiet diplomacy is.” She told ABC: “As I understand it, Julian is with his family and his sisters Live a normal life. Stella thanked all the supporters especially the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. The head of government, which campaigned for a settlement of the case, has not yet commented publicly.
The US government accuses Assange of stealing and releasing classified information from military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, Assange’s supporters see him as being targeted by the Washington Justice Department because of his exposure of US war crimes. If convicted without a deal with prosecutors, Assange could face up to 175 years in prison for espionage. (APA/dpa/AFP/Reuters)
