Biden weighs Australia's plea to halt Julian Assange prosecution

President Joe Biden mentioned during a press conference at the White House that his administration is currently reviewing a request from Australia to dismiss charges against Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

In February, the Australian Parliament passed a motion urging for Assange to be returned to his home country of Australia.

When asked about Australia's request to stop Assange's prosecution, Biden mentioned that they are currently reviewing it. CNN has reached out to the National Security Council for further comments on the president's response.

US officials claim that Assange, aged 52, endangered lives by releasing classified military files and have been trying to extradite him on espionage charges. Assange is wanted by the US for publishing confidential military documents leaked by former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning in 2010 and 2011.

In 2019, Assange was charged by prosecutors in Virginia with a total of 18 offenses. This included one charge of conspiracy to attempt to hack a computer in relation to the 2010 release of classified military material obtained through Manning. Additionally, he faced 17 more counts under the Espionage Act.

According to the prosecution, Assange allegedly encouraged Manning to acquire thousands of pages of unfiltered US diplomatic cables. These cables potentially put confidential sources at risk, as well as contained significant activity reports related to the Iraq war and information on Guantanamo Bay detainees.

If convicted, Assange could face up to 175 years in prison, with each count carrying a potential sentence of 10 years.

For the past five years, Assange has been fighting extradition from London's Belmarsh prison. Prior to that, he spent seven years as a political refugee at the Ecuadorian embassy in the UK capital. His situation has drawn criticism from free speech advocates who fear that allowing his extradition could threaten press freedoms.

Last month, Assange successfully defended against an immediate extradition threat during a hearing in London, where he is currently detained.

Assange requested to appeal the UK's decision to allow his extradition in 2022, claiming that the charges against him were politically driven and expressing concerns about receiving a fair trial. A panel of two judges ruled that Assange, who is an Australian citizen, would not be extradited right away, giving the US a three-week deadline to provide assurances regarding his First Amendment rights and guaranteeing that he would not face the death penalty.

If the US does not provide these documents, Assange will have the opportunity to appeal his extradition at a hearing scheduled for May. This ruling could be a game-changer in the ongoing story of Assange, who gained worldwide attention for exposing what he called "convincing evidence of war crimes" committed by US-led coalition and Iraqi government forces.

Editor's P/S:

The ongoing saga of Julian Assange's extradition battle raises complex questions about the intersection of national security, press freedom, and the rule of law. Assange's supporters argue that his actions in publishing classified military documents served the public interest by exposing wrongdoing and war crimes. However, US prosecutors maintain that he endangered lives and violated espionage laws.

The US government's request for Assange's extradition has drawn criticism from free speech advocates who fear it could set a dangerous precedent by criminalizing the publication of confidential information. They argue that journalists should be protected from prosecution for reporting on matters of public importance, even if those reports are based on leaked or classified documents. The outcome of Assange's case will have significant implications for the future of press freedom and the balance between national security and the public's right to know.