Newsman: A British judge has blocked the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the United States, saying he would not be safe in a U.S. prison due to his deteriorated mental state. Judge Vanessa Baraitser said, “Assange would not be safe in U.S. prisons due to the state of his mental health and the increased risk of suicide. Judge Baraitser said, “I find that the mental condition of Mr. Assange is such that it would be oppressive to extradite him to the United States of America.” The United States has already announced plans to appeal the ruling. Press freedom advocates have campaigned against Assange’s prosecution for years, arguing it would set a dangerous precedent for prosecuting journalists.
In the year 2019, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was indicted in the United States on 17 counts of violating the Espionage Act related to the publication of classified documents exposing U.S. war crimes in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. Assange could have faced up to 175 years prison term in US.
The blocked extradition due to concern over prison safety rather than press freedom shows that “this is not the end of the road,” says Assange legal adviser Jennifer Robinson. “This is still a terrible precedent.” We also speak with Jameel Jaffer, founding director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, who says that while the decision is a “very significant victory” for Assange, the judge has largely sided with the U.S. prosecution.
Supporters of Assange celebrated outside the London courthouse.
