WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been released after 1,901 days in maximum security prison following his guilty plea in a US court. The court on the US Pacific island of Saipan released Assange today after he pleaded guilty to violating the US Espionage Act as part of a deal that will see him return to Australia.
During the three-hour hearing, Assange admitted to conspiring to obtain and disclose classified US national defense documents. He argued that he believed the First Amendment, which protects freedom of expression, would shield his actions. 'While working as a journalist, I encouraged my source to provide information that was said to be confidential for publication,' Assange told the court. 'I thought the First Amendment protected this act, but I accept that it was... a violation of the Espionage Act.'
Senior District Court Judge Ramona V. Manglona accepted his guilty plea and released him due to time already served in a British prison. Assange, 52, is scheduled to leave Saipan later today for Canberra on a private plane, accompanied by Australia's ambassadors to the United States and the United Kingdom, according to flight records.
Prosecutors chose the American island located in the western Pacific Ocean for the trial due to Assange's opposition to traveling to the mainland US and its proximity to Australia. The session was attended by dozens of media representatives from around the world, although they were not allowed to photograph the proceedings.
Assange spent over five years in a British prison and seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he faced charges of sex crimes in Sweden and fought extradition to the United States. The Australian government had called for his release multiple times.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated in a press conference that the release was a result of patient and measured efforts by the Australian government. 'This is something that has been patiently considered and worked on in a measured manner, and this is the way we do things in Australia,' he added.
The United Nations praised Assange's release, highlighting the human rights concerns raised by his detention. 'We welcome the release of Julian Assange from prison in the United Kingdom,' said Liz Throssell, spokeswoman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Assange's mother, Christine Assange, expressed her relief, saying she is 'grateful that my son's suffering has finally ended.'
However, not everyone agreed with the decision. Former US Vice President Mike Pence condemned the plea deal on social media, calling it 'a miscarriage of justice... that belittles the service and sacrifice of men and women in our armed forces.'
- Assange's release comes after a prolonged legal battle that saw him detained in London's high-security Belmarsh prison since April 2019. He was initially arrested after spending seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid extradition to Sweden on sexual assault charges, which were later dropped.
- Among the controversial materials Assange published was a video showing civilians being killed by American helicopter fire in Iraq in 2007, including a photographer and a driver working for Reuters. Assange's actions have made him one of the most wanted individuals by the American judiciary, particularly after he published hundreds of thousands of secret US documents on WikiLeaks in 2010.
