The UK judge had decided to block the US request for Julian's extradition, on medical grounds. Now the US government is seeking to overturn that decision on appeal. Although the District Judge refused the extradition she nevertheless denied Julian bail. He is still being held in Belmarsh Prison, as an unconvicted prisoner, in appalling conditions during Covid lockdown. He has been there for two years not allowed to receive any visitors and has no direct access to his lawyers. He hasn't seen his family and children since last year.
The Trump administration charged Julian Assange under the Espionage Act for exposing war crimes and human rights abuses in 2010 and 2011. Julian exposed the killing of unarmed civilians and the torture of innocent people. For that the people who are driving this want to bury Julian in the deepest, darkest corner of the US prison system for the rest of his life. Julian faces a potential sentence of 175 years. If Julian Assange is extradited he will be put on trial in Alexandria, Virginia, where he stands no chance of a fair trial. It is where US intelligence agencies are headquartered. The court complex is 15 miles from CIA headquarters. The state is populated by employees of the very sector whose abuses and crimes Julian exposed.
Press freedom groups consider the indictment against Julian the single gravest threat to press freedom in the US, the UK and Europe, because of its extraterritorial nature. Amnesty International says the charges against him should never have been brought in the first place. The charges were politically-motivated, and the UK government should never have so willingly assisted the US in its unrelenting pursuit of Assange. Human Rights Watch is amongst the groups asking the Biden Administration to drop the prosecution.
The persecution of Julian Assange is an attack on journalists’ right to do their jobs, the public’s right to know what is done in their name, and the ability to hold our government to account. The UK government has signed the Global Pledge on Media Freedom to advocate for media freedom and safety of journalists, and
hold to account those who harm journalists for doing their job, the government should commit to it and release Julian Assange from prison.
Let's come together and tell the Home Secretary -- it's time to free Julian Assange!
You can see the original source of this petition here.
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