Julian Assange timeline: Wikileaks founder makes first public statement after prison release

Legal enactment against Assange began successful 2010 aft WikiLeaks published thousands of leaked documents concerning the Afghanistan and Iraq wars.

Addressing a quality rights committee (Pace) of the Council of Europe successful Strasbourg, the 52-year-old said: “Justice for maine present is precluded arsenic the US authorities insisted successful penning into its plea statement that I cannot record a lawsuit astatine the European Court of Human Rights oregon adjacent a Freedom of Information petition implicit what it did to maine arsenic a effect of its extradition request.”

Assange was arrested successful April 2019 astatine the Ecuadorean embassy successful London, wherever helium had sought asylum to debar extradition to Sweden connected an allegation of rape, which helium denied. He claimed it was a ploy to extradite him to the US to look charges of espionage.

After breaching bail conditions, helium was sentenced to 50 weeks’ imprisonment astatine HMP Belmarsh in south-east London, which helium likened to a “dungeon”.

“I privation to beryllium wholly clear: I americium not escaped contiguous due to the fact that the strategy worked. I americium escaped contiguous (after) years of incarceration due to the fact that I pled blameworthy to journalism,” helium continued.

“I pled blameworthy to seeking accusation from a source. I pled blameworthy to obtaining accusation from a source, and I pled blameworthy to informing the nationalist what that accusation was. I did not plead blameworthy to thing else.

“I anticipation my grounds contiguous tin service to item the weakness, the weaknesses of the existing safeguards, and to assistance those whose cases are little visible, but who are arsenic vulnerable.”

What are the cardinal dates successful Assange’s ineligible woes, which span implicit a decade? Find a timeline here.

– August: An apprehension warrant is filed for Assange implicit 2 abstracted allegations – 1 of rape and 1 of molestation – aft helium visits Sweden for a speaking trip. He is questioned by constabulary and denies the allegations, saying they are “without basis”.

– December: Assange is arrested successful London aft presenting himself to police. He is granted bail and starts an entreaty against the planetary apprehension warrant.

– May: The UK Supreme Court upholds the High Court decision, ruling that Assange should beryllium extradited to Sweden for questioning.

– June: Assange enters the Ecuadorian embassy successful London, requesting governmental asylum and demanding that the US ends its “witch-hunt” against him. A time later, Scotland Yard confirms Assange volition beryllium taxable to apprehension for breaching his bail conditions.

– June: Assange says helium volition not permission the embassy adjacent if enactment allegations against him are dropped, due to the fact that helium fears moves are underway to extradite him to the US.

– July: He loses a ineligible bid to person an apprehension warrant issued successful Sweden cancelled.

– October 12: The Metropolitan Police extremity their 24-hour defender extracurricular the Ecuadorian embassy. It concludes a three-year constabulary cognition that is estimated to person outgo much than £12 million.

– February: An adept UN sheet rules that Assange has been “arbitrarily detained” since his apprehension and telephone for his freedom.

– September: Sweden’s Court of Appeal rejects a bid by Assange to person his enactment battle warrant dropped.

– April: America’s lawyer general, Jeff Sessions, says Assange’s apprehension is simply a “priority” for the US.

– May: An probe into an allegation of rape against Assange is dropped by Marianne Ny, Sweden’s manager of nationalist prosecutions.

– September: Assange steps down arsenic exertion of WikiLeaks.

– October: The Ecuadorean embassy lays retired a acceptable of location rules for Assange to follow, requiring him to get support for each visits from diplomatic unit and to debar online comments astir politics.

– April 11: Assange is arrested aft the Ecuadorian authorities withdraws his asylum, blaming his “repeated violations” of “international conventions and daily-life protocols”. He is recovered blameworthy of breaching the Bail Act and remanded successful custody astatine HMP Belmarsh.

– May: Assange is sentenced to 50 weeks’ imprisonment by Southwark Crown Court. He continues to beryllium held connected remand successful HMP Belmarsh from September aft serving the custodial sentence.

– May: Swedish authorities reopen their probe into the alleged rape and the US reveals 17 caller charges against Assange, including conspiracy to get and disclose nationalist defence accusation and conspiracy to perpetrate machine intrusions.

– November: The alleged rape probe is discontinued by Swedish prosecutors.

– February: At an extradition proceeding astatine Woolwich Crown Court, Assange’s representatives reason helium cannot legally beryllium handed to the US for “political offences” due to the fact that of a 2003 extradition treaty.

– January 4: A justice astatine the Old Bailey rules that Assange cannot beryllium extradited to the United States owed to the interaction connected his intelligence health.

– January: Assange wins the archetypal signifier of his Supreme Court entreaty bid against a determination to let his extradition to the US.

– April: Westminster Magistrates Court formally issues an extradition order, meaning Home Secretary Priti Patel is present liable for deciding whether to o.k. the extradition, with 2 months to marque her decision.

– June: Patel signs the extradition order. Assange has the accustomed 14-day close to appeal. He files an entreaty against the determination 2 weeks later.

– April: A missive to the US lawyer wide is signed by 35 parliamentarians calling for extradition proceedings to beryllium dropped against Assange.

– June: Assange loses latest extradition entreaty bid.

– January: Assange’s lawyer says the WikiLeaks founder’s beingness “is astatine risk” if his last entreaty against his extradition to the US fails.

– March: Two judges astatine the High Court diminution to disregard oregon assistance Assange’s bid for an appeal, giving the US authorities 3 weeks to supply “satisfactory assurances”.

– April: The judges corroborate the US authorities person provided an assurance to the court, meaning a determination connected Assange’s entreaty bid volition beryllium considered astatine a proceeding successful May.

– May: Assange is fixed the greenish airy to bring an entreaty connected the grounds helium whitethorn beryllium discriminated against and not capable to trust connected escaped code protections successful the US.

– June: Julian Assange is granted bail by the High Court successful London and released from HMP Belmarsh pursuing negotiations with US authorities implicit a plea deal. He flies to a US territory successful the Pacific to formalise the deal.

– June: Assange formally pleads blameworthy to 1 number of breaching an Espionage Act – conspiring to unlawfully get and disclose classified documents relating to classified nationalist defence information. After a justice signs disconnected his unexpected plea deal, helium returns to Australia.

- October: Assange gives his archetypal nationalist connection since his merchandise from situation portion addressing a quality rights committee successful Strasbourg.