Per Samuelsson, Assange’s Swedish defense lawyer, said he would appeal the decision to the country’s Supreme Court.
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Swedish prosecutors say they are not in contact with counterparts in the US and, in any case, would need Britain’s permission if a third country sought his extradition.
The statute of limitations on the rape allegation, which could lead to up to four years in prison, expires in August 2020. “Mr Assange´s mental health is highly likely to deteriorate over time if he remains in his current situation”.
The court said the lengthy deadlock and the previous passivity of Swedish prosecutors in pursuing the investigation were arguments for setting aside the warrant, but there remained a strong public interest argument for it remaining in place. “Julian Assange’s claim to that effect shall therefore be refused”, the court said.
He has challenged the detention order several times, and says that he fears he will be extradited to the United States to face charges if he leaves the embassy.
Assange avoided possible extradition to Sweden by taking refuge in Ecuador’s London embassy in 2012.
Even if the Swedish warrant were ultimately lifted, Assange is still liable to arrest in London for having evaded justice after his appeals against extradition were rejected, according to British police. We doubt that the Swedes would have thought it a good thing that Assange was attempting to cast himself as the victim rather than the women who made the complaints. He was arrested in the United Kingdom which was even more likely than the Swedes to send him to the US. Instead with his delusions of significance he was convinced that the U.S. was out to get him.
People were yesterday seen loading items into a white truck outside the Ecuadorean Embassy, fuelling speculation Assange could be on the move.
An agreement was made allowing an Ecuadorean prosecutor to question Assange at its London embassy on October 17, Reuters reported.
The 27-page document, which was released alongside a dental assessment and a report detailing a worrying problem with his right shoulder, revealed that due to a lack of light Assange often goes 18 to 22 hours without sleeping until eventually passing out from exhaustion.
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The court’s statement notes that the appeal relates to the extradition and not to the original accusations, alleged to have occurred in 2010: “It should be specifically pointed out that the question of guilt has not been decided”.
