Guest
Julian Assange, the controversial founder of WikiLeaks, finds himself at the center of a legal battle spanning continents and years. The London High Court's two-day hearings on February 20th and 21st are pivotal moments in his saga, determining whether he may appeal the United States' request for his extradition to face espionage charges. At stake are not just legal ramifications but also Assange's health and life. His wife, Stella Assange, voices grave concerns about his deteriorating physical and mental well-being, emphasizing the looming threat of what she calls an “inadvertent death penalty“ should he be extradited. Assange's absence from the court due to illness underscores the severity of his condition, as conveyed by his legal team. The backdrop to this legal drama is a prior ruling by a British judge in January 2021, which blocked Assange's extradition to the US on grounds that he faced a high risk of suicide under the harsh conditions of American incarceration. Despite this decision, US authorities persist in their efforts to bring Assange to trial, alleging his involvement in one of the largest leaks of classified US military documents in history. The charges against Assange, stemming from his role in the publication of sensitive military materials on WikiLeaks in 2010, paint a picture of collaboration with former US intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. US prosecutors assert that Assange conspired to hack into Pentagon servers to obtain the leaked documents, leading to a legal showdown with far-reaching implications for press freedom, national security, and human rights. Should the London High Court rule against Assange's appeal, his legal team plans to take the case to the European Court of Human Rights. However, the timing of any favorable ruling from the European court remains uncertain, leaving Assange's fate hanging in the balance as he continues to fight extradition while grappling with mounting health concerns and the specter of a lengthy prison sentence in the United States. #wikileaks #julianassange #highcourt #london #britishjudges #us #worldnews n18oc_world n18oc_crux CRUX is your daily video news guide to the big events that are shaping our world. We track news, geopolitics, diplomacy and defence strategies and explain how they shape national policies. Crux makes sense of global developments, and analyses their impact on daily lives. Follow CRUX on Telegram: Follow CRUX on Instagram (@): Follow CRUX on Facebook: #GetCloserToTheNews with latest headlines on politics, sports and entertainment on Also watch: Crux Decode: Crux : Crux Most Watched:
