Ecuador to hand over Julian Assange to British police

Lenin Moreno, the president of Ecuador, met in London with British officials about withdrawing asylum from Julian Assange. The WikiLeaks founder has resided in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012.

According to a source with ties to the Ecuadorian foreign ministry, Moreno has already nearly reached an agreement to hand over Assange to the United Kingdom. The agreement may even have already been reached and Assange will be removed from the Ecuadorian embassy this week, The Intercept writes.

The Intercept further states that it is unlikely that the United Kingdom will give any guarantee that Assange will not be transferred to the United States. The website expects Assange, although there are no major charges against him, to be placed in prison in the UK.

Currently, the only charge against Assange is a failed arrest warrant from 2012. He was charged when he fled to the Ecuadorian embassy in 2012. The charges carry a three-month prison sentence and a fine, although the sentence could potentially be challenged based on Assange’s previous times incarcerated. Sweden has also been charged with sexual assault against Assange, but the government of that country decided last year to withdraw the warrant.

It is unclear what exactly will happen to Assange after he is extradited to the United Kingdom. The United States has wanted to prosecute Assange since 2010 for leaking internal US government documents via the WikiLeaks website. It only seems difficult to prosecute him for violating anti-espionage legislation without other media being charged with espionage in this way, and the freedom of the press is at stake.

Ecuador’s extradition of Assange has been in the pipeline for a while. In January, the Ecuadorian government called Assange’s stay untenable. The WikiLeaks founder is also said to have broken into the communication system of the Ecuadorian embassy, ​​and since March has no longer been able to access the internet or receive visitors.