Julian Assange’s wife urges Biden to ‘do right thing’ as Australian PM says ‘enough is enough’
Julian Assange’s wife has called on Joe Biden to “do the right thing” and “drop the charges” as Thursday marks the fifth anniversary of her husband’s imprisonment.
The US president has said he is “considering” a request from Australia, where Assange is from, to drop the prosecution and allow the WikiLeaks founder to return to his country.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Biden ‘considering’ dropping Assange prosecution
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called it an “encouraging statement”.
“I believe this must be brought to a conclusion and that Mr Assange has already paid a significant price and enough is enough,” said Mr Albanese on Thursday.
“There’s nothing to be gained by Mr Assange’s continued incarceration, in my very strong view, and I’ve put that as the view of the Australian government.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘Assange already paid significant price’ says Australian PM
Assange‘s lawyer also called Mr Biden’s remarks “encouraging”, while Assange’s brother, Gabriel Shipton, described them as “significant”.
Speaking to Sky News from Melbourne, Mr Shipton said: “This is a controversial prosecution and I think something that Joe Biden could easily get rid of in an election year.”
He added: “This is seen as a complete scandal around the world. It’s not popular with the electorates in any of the countries, and it could easily be brought to an end.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Assange’s brother calls for release
Assange, 52, faces prosecution in the US over an alleged conspiracy, nearly a decade and a half ago, to obtain and disclose national defence information.
It followed the publication of hundreds of thousands of leaked documents relating to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
After Britain eventually approved his extradition, Assange’s lawyers in February launched a final bid to block it in the English courts.
His extradition was put on hold in March after the High Court said it wanted more assurances he would not face the death penalty.
A further hearing is due in May.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Stella Assange spoke to Sky’s Yalda Hakim in March
WikiLeaks editor Kristinn Hrafnsson, who visited Assange at London’s Belmarsh prison on Thursday, said it was “not too late” to stop the extradition.
After their meeting, he told Sky News that Assange was “delighted” by President Biden’s comments, believing his remarks to be a “positive step”.
The UK government has said Mr Biden’s comments aren’t enough for it to act.
Mr Hrafnsson said he assumes the UK government will “knock on the door” of President Biden for clarity.
“The UK government justifiably wants a definition,” he said.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Assange ‘delighted’ by Biden remarks
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
It comes as supporters prepare to mark five years since Assange was taken to Belmarsh prison, having been dragged out of his refuge at the Ecuadorian embassy.
Events will be held around the world on Thursday as they continue to campaign for his release.
Australian authorities say there is a disconnect between America’s treatment of Assange and US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning.
The US accuses Assange of encouraging and helping Manning to steal diplomatic cables and military files which were then published by WikiLeaks, allegedly putting American agents’ lives at risk.
Read more on Sky News:
Stella Assange: ‘It’s not safe to send Julian to US’
Assange ‘created grave risk to US agents’
Assange evaded arrest for seven years by living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London
Manning was sentenced to 35 years but Barack Obama cut it to seven years, allowing her to be released in 2017.
Assange’s supporters insist he is a journalist who exposed US military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan that was in the public interest, and that he is protected by the First Amendment.
Dozens of supporters were outside court as the man accused of fatally shooting the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare made his first appearance.
Luigi Mangione has pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of murder following the 4 December killing of Brian Thompson, 50, outside a midtown Manhattan hotel.
The 26-year-old is accused of ambushing and shooting the executive as he walked to an investor conference.
Luigi Mangione supporters stand outside the Supreme Court. Pic: AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah
Dozens of people who showed up in court to support the suspect including former army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning who was jailed for stealing classified diplomatic cables.
Dozens more queued in the hallway.
Mangione is also facing federal charges that could carry the possibility of the death penalty.
The judge set a deadline of 9 April to submit pre-trial motions.
Luigi Mangione is accused of fatally shooting Brian Thompson. Pic: Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP
In addition to the New York cases, Mr Mangione also faces charges of forgery, carrying firearms without a licence, and other counts in Pennsylvania, where authorities arrested him at a McDonald’s.
Police say he was in possession of a gun, bullets, multiple fake IDs and a handwritten document that expressed “ill will” towards corporate America.
He is being held in a Brooklyn jail alongside several other high-profile defendants, including music mogul and rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs, and disgraced crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried.
The killing prompted some to voice their resentment at US health insurers, with Mangione attracting a cult following.
A poll taken in the wake of the shooting showed most Americans believe health insurance profits and coverage denials were partly to blame for the incident.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports11 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway