In a blow for activist Julian Assange, a Swedish appeals court ruled that the arrest warrant, which would see Assange extradited back to Sweden, will be upheld.
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The decision by the Svea Court of Appeal means that the arrest warrant stands for the computer hacker, who has avoided extradition to Sweden by seeking shelter at the Ecuadoran Embassy in London since 2012.
Assange has maintained the same stance since the warrant was issued: He is willing to speak with investigators about the rape charges, which he denies, but will continue to fight his extradition to Sweden because it would nearly certainly lead to extradition to the United States, where the attorney general’s office wants to question him as part of its ongoing criminal investigation into the activities of WikiLeaks.
“The Court of Appeal shares the assessment of the District Court that Julian Assange is still suspected on probable cause of rape”, the court said. Assange feared that Sweden would extradite him to the USA where he believes he could face espionage charges for his role in the mass publication of secret US government documents.
His lawyer, Per Samuelson, said he would appeal to the Supreme Court.
The appeals court noted that the length of his embassy stay and “the earlier passivity” of police investigators were “arguments for setting aside the detention”.
“At present, continued detention therefore appears to be both effective and necessary so as to be able to move the investigation forward”.
However, Assange is set to face questioning – albeit indirectly – by Swedish officials in relation to the rape case at the embassy on October 17.
In August, the Ecuadorian embassy accepted a request for Assange’s questioning to be held there.
“Julian Assange is being detained arbitrarily and should be freed immediately”, Ecuador’s government said in a statement, adding that it would continue to protect and give him asylum in line with its traditional defence of human rights. “The rape allegation, which involves one of the women, will expire in 2020 if Assange hasn’t been indicted by then”. WikiLeaks stated on Twitter, in response to the recent ruling, that “Sweden has a long history of compromising its rule of law where the perceived interests of the United States are concerned”.
Julian Assange also indicated, after learning of the court’s decision, that he would be willing to serve time in a USA prison if President Obama would commute the sentence of former Army private Chelsea Manning, though he did state that any sentence he received would be unjust.
WikiLeaks and Assange have been a consistent source of debate among the public and the political class. Supporters view WikiLeaks as a heroic group exposing the double-dealings and shadiness of political bureaucrats around the world, while opponents see an organization which recklessly exposes important diplomatic secrets that puts lives and national security at risk.
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“The United Nations has already determined that Mr Assange’s six-year detention without charge is unlawful and that he must be released and compensated”.
