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.
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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.”
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‘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.”
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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.
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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.
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Assange ‘delighted’ by Biden remarks
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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.
Democrats have shared more pictures from Jeffrey Epstein’s estate, a day before the government’s deadline for the full release.
The 68 photos published on Thursday are among more than 95,000 images that the House Oversight Committee Democrats said they were reviewing.
They said the images were “selected to provide the public with transparency into a representative sample of the photos” and to “provide insights into Epstein’s network and his extremely disturbing activities”.
Jeffrey Epstein. Pic: @OversightDems
But the Democrats added that they are still analysing thousands more images that are “both graphic and mundane”.
There is no suggestion of wrongdoing on the part of those pictured in the images – and the context surrounding the photos is not known.
Mystery text quotes price for ‘girl’
The latest cache includes a text message appearing to discuss the price for a girl.
It isn’t clear who sent the messages and to whom, but the screenshot shows some details on an unidentified girl, described as a teenager here.
“I will send u girls now,” one of the texts read.
Pic: @OversightDems
Writing on body
Several pictures show handwritten messages on a person’s body.
One appears to be quoting the opening paragraph of the book Lolita – which can be seen in the background of the picture.
The book was written by Vladimir Nabokov and tells the story of a girl groomed by a middle-aged literature professor.
Another shows writing on a foot, which reads: “She was Lo, plain Lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock.”
The writing appears to be quoting the opening paragraph of the book Lolita. Pic: @OversightDems
Another handwritten message. Pic: @OversightDems
Other messages can be seen on the neck, hip, back and chest, with the latter reading: “The tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down”.
In a different image, Epstein is pictured with three girls in his house in New York. One appears to be touching Epstein’s chest, one is holding her wrist up and another is looking at a laptop.
The identity of the women has been hidden.
Epstein with three women whose faces have been redacted. Pic: @OversightDems
Epstein with high-profile figures
Some high-profile figures also appear in the newly released images, with one showing Epstein sitting alongside Sheikh Jabor Bin Yousef Bin Jassim Bin Jabor al Thani.
He is the chairman and director of several privately established companies and is a member of the Qatari royal family.
Epstein with Sheikh Jabor Bin Yousef Bin Jassim Bin Jabor al Thani. Pic: @OversightDems
Another image shows Epstein with the former president of the UN General Assembly, Miroslav Lajcak, who held the role between 2017 and 2018. He is also a former Slovakian foreign affairs minister.
Last month, he told TASR news agency: “The reopening of the Epstein case occurred after I left New York, and the full extent of his inexcusable actions, which I strongly condemn, only came to light after his arrest.”
Miroslav Lajcak, former president of the UN General Assembly, next to Epstein. Pic: @OversightDems
Shaher Abdulhak, a deceased Yemeni billionaire businessman whose son is a suspect in the murder of a Norwegian woman in Mayfair, was also pictured with Epstein.
His son, Farouk Abdulhak, fled to Yemen after the rape and death of Martine Vik Magnussen in March 2008 and has been wanted for questioning ever since.
Ms Magnussen was found dead among rubble in a basement in Great Portland Street.
She and her friends had been celebrating finishing their end-of-term exams at the Maddox nightclub before she vanished. Her body was found two days later.
Deceased Yemeni billionaire Shaher Abdulhak with Epstein. Pic: @OversightDems
Epstein and Steve Bannon. Pic: @OversightDems
Also featured in the newly released images were former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, magician David Blaine, businessman Tom Pritzker, billionaire Bill Gates, director Woody Allen, talk show host Dick Cavett, Trump ally Steve Bannon, and Kuwait’s former information minister Anas al Rasheed.
Photos of identity documents with redacted names were also published, including one with text saying that “the bearer was convicted of a sex offense against a minor”, which could belong to convicted sex offender Epstein.
Also among the identification documents is a heavily redacted Russian passport. It belongs to a female, but other information has been blocked out.
The release also includes ID documents from the Czech Republic, South Africa, Ukraine, and Lithuania.
One passport appeared to belong to someone ‘convicted of a sex offense against a minor’. Pic: @OversightDems
Epstein’s passport. Pic: @OversightDems
Deadline looming
The picture drop came a day before the deadline set by a bipartisan bill that compels the US Justice Department to release the Epstein files within 30 days, which was signed into law by US President Donald Trump last month.
Mr Trump had promised to release the Epstein files during his ultimately successful presidential campaign, but he later made a U-turn, even going as far as calling the Epstein files a Democratic “hoax”, before eventually changing path again to sign the bill.
House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries said ahead of the deadline that he believes the Department of Justice will release the files in time, and warned that there will be “strong bipartisan pushback” if they don’t.
“Based on my conversations with some of the top Democrats who’ve been working on this matter, related to full and complete disclosure of the Epstein files, we do expect compliance,” he told reporters on Thursday.
Full release going ‘down to the wire’
National security lawyers inside the Department of Justice are “working down to the wire” as Friday’s deadline for the full release of the Epstein files edges closer, according to Sky News’ US correspondent James Matthews.
He said those lawyers are mulling “how much is actually divulged in these documents”.
“There will be redactions… the question is, how far short of everything? How far short of the full story will the release fall?” Matthews said.
“The issue at the heart of it… where does Donald Trump feature? Remember, he emphatically denies all knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activities and any involvement in them.”
Read more:
Releasing the Epstein files: How we got here
Ghislaine Maxwell attempts to overturn conviction
‘Frustration building’
Meanwhile, frustration is building at the justice department ahead of the release, according to CNN.
A source has told the US broadcaster that there could be up to 1,000 redactions needed from each attorney.
Lawyers reportedly believe they aren’t getting clear or comprehensive direction on how to make the most information available under the law.
A previous batch of images featured more high-profile figures, including Donald Trump, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Bill Clinton, British entrepreneur Richard Branson, Emirati businessman Ahmed bin Sulayem, and singer Jimmy Buffett.
Several images of a sexual nature have also been released, including a picture of a bowl of novelty condoms with a caricature of Mr Trump’s face, and various sex toys.
TikTok’s Chinese owner has signed a deal to sell the company’s US arm to American investors – ensuring the video platform can continue operating in the United States.
The deal is expected to close on 22 January 2026, according to an internal memo seen by Sky News’ US partner, NBC News.
It will end years of uncertainty over the app’s future in the States, after Joe Biden signed a law last year that required TikTok’s Chinese owners to sell up – or else it would be blocked.
The law was introduced amid concerns from some US politicians that ByteDance might share user data with the Chinese government, despite repeated assurances from the firm that it would not.
Critics also expressed fears that Chinese authorities may be able to manipulate TikTok’s algorithms and shape what content users see and are influenced by. This claim was also denied.
Mr Biden set a January 2025 deadline for the sale and when ByteDance failed to comply, TikTok went dark for several hours.
It returned after Donald Trump signed an executive order to keep it running on his first day in office.
Who’s taking over?
The internal memo sent to employees on Thursday said the deal allows “over 170 million Americans to continue discovering a world of endless possibilities as part of a vital global community.”
TikTok owner ByteDance will sell just over 80% of the company’s US assets to three major investors, Reuters news agency reports.
The investors – Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX – will form a new venture, named TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC.
Read more from Sky News:
Ex-footballer wins court case
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The venture will be 50% held by the consortium of US investors, Reuters added, with affiliates of certain existing ByteDance investors holding 30.1% and ByteDance itself retaining 19.9%.
It will have a new, seven-member majority-American board of directors and be subject to terms that “protect Americans’ data and US national security”, the memo said.
Data from users in the US will be stored locally.
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