The Swedish prosecutor heading a preliminary investigation into an allegation of rape against Julian Assange has said she is preparing a new application to interview him at Ecuador’s embassy in London. Last year, Swedish authorities dropped two cases of sexual assault against him, though the allegation of rape still stands-and it’s in connection with that case the Swedish prosecutor wants to question him.
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The U.K. also expressed frustration over the UNWGAD’s decision and said that it will formally contest the ruling.
As we reported on February 5, Assange was arrested in 2010 under a European Arrest Warrant issued by Sweden over claims of sexual assault-claims he denies.
Referring to Britain and Sweden’s refusal to comply with the United Nations panel’s decision, Swanson points to similar cases in the past where such rulings on prisoners in non-Western countries were hailed by the very same countries.
Assange fears that if he is extradited to Sweden, he will then be extradited to the USA where he could be put on trial over the WikiLeaks website, which has published thousands of classified documents.
Since August 2012, Assange “has not been able to leave the Ecuadorian Embassy and is subject to extensive surveillance by the British police”, said the panel, which added that it considered that the detention should be brought to an end, besides giving Assange the right to compensation. The U.S. says there’s no sealed indictment against Assange.
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But Stockholm and London angrily rejected the findings. “Should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me”, he wrote in his statement on Twitter.
