Julian Assange Granted Leave to Appeal Extradition to the United States

BREAKING NEWS:

A London court ruled on Monday that Julian Assange, the embattled WikiLeaks founder, could appeal his extradition to the United States.

Assange's legal troubles began in 2010 when he was arrested in London at the request of Sweden, which wanted to question him about allegations of sexual assault. He was later released on bail but was re-arrested in 2019 after he skipped bail and sought refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. In 2019, he was found guilty of skipping bail and sentenced to 50 weeks in prison.

In 2020, the United States requested Assange's extradition on charges of violating the Espionage Act and hacking into government computers. A British court had previously ruled that he could not be extradited due to his mental health, but that ruling was overturned on Monday.

Assange's lawyers have argued that the extradition would be politically motivated and that he would not receive a fair trial in the United States. The United States has said that Assange will receive a fair trial and that the charges against him are serious.

The appeal process could take months or even years. It is unclear at this time when the appeal hearing will take place.