London’s high court to rule on US submissions on Monday
19 May 2024 - 17:22
byMichael Holden, Kate Holton and Sarah Young
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A view of a placard depicting WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange outside the high court on the day Assange appeals against his extradition to the US, in London, Britain, on February 20 2024. Picture: ISABEL INFANTES/REUTERS
London — WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will learn on Monday whether he has lost his long-running legal battle in the English courts to prevent his extradition from Britain to the US to face criminal charges, nearly all under the Espionage Act.
The following are some key events and details in Assange’s life:
July 1971 — Assange is born in Townsville, Australia, to parents involved in theatre. As a teenager, he gains a reputation as a computer programmer, and in 1995 is fined for computer hacking but avoids prison on condition he does not offend again.
2006 — He founds WikiLeaks, creating an internet-based “dead letter drop” for leakers of classified or sensitive information.
April 5 2010 — WikiLeaks releases leaked video from a US helicopter showing an air strike that killed civilians in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff.
July 25 2010 — WikiLeaks releases more than 91,000 documents, mostly secret US military reports about the Afghanistan war.
October 2010 — WikiLeaks releases 400,000 classified military files chronicling the Iraq war. The next month, it releases thousands of US diplomatic cables, including candid views of foreign leaders and blunt assessments of security threats.
November 18 2010 — A Swedish court orders Assange’s arrest over sex-crime allegations, which he denies. He is arrested in Britain the next month on a European arrest warrant but freed on bail.
February 2011 — London’s Westminster magistrate’s court orders Assange’s extradition to Sweden. He appeals.
June 14 2012 — The British supreme court rejects Assange’s final appeal and five days later he takes refuge in Ecuador’s embassy in London and seeks political asylum, which Ecuador grants in August 2012.
May 19 2017 — Swedish prosecutors discontinue their investigation, saying it is impossible to proceed while Assange is in the Ecuadorean embassy.
April 11 2019 — Assange is carried out of the embassy and arrested after Ecuador revokes his political asylum. He is sentenced on May 1 to 50 weeks in prison by a British court for skipping bail. He completes the sentence early but remains jailed pending extradition hearings.
May 13 2019 — Swedish prosecutors reopen their investigation and say they will seek Assange’s extradition to Sweden.
June 11 2019 — The US justice department formally asks Britain to extradite Assange to the US to face charges that he conspired to hack US government computers and violated an espionage law.
November 19 2019 — Swedish prosecutors drop their investigation, saying the evidence is not strong enough to bring charges, in part because of the passage of time.
February 21 2020 — A London court begins the first part of extradition hearings.
January 4 2021 — A British judge rules that Assange should not be extradited to the US to face criminal charges, saying his mental health problems mean he would be at risk of suicide.
December 10 2021 — The US wins an appeal against the ruling after a judge says he is satisfied with a US package of assurances about the conditions of Assange’s detention.
March 14 2022 — Britain’s supreme court refuses to grant Assange permission to appeal against a decision to extradite him to the US.
March 23 2022 — Assange marries his long-term partner, Stella Moris — the mother of his two children fathered inside the Ecuadorean embassy — inside a British high-security prison.
June 17 2022 — Britain orders Assange’s extradition to the US, a decision Assange appeals.
June 2023 — A judge at London’s high court rules Assange has no legal grounds to appeal.
February 20 2024 — Assange’s lawyers launch what his supporters say would be his final attempt to stop his extradition.
March 26 2024 — The extradition is put on hold after the court says the US must provide assurances that Assange would not face the death penalty.
On Monday, the court will decide if the submissions meet its requirement.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Timeline: Julian Assange’s running legal battles
London’s high court to rule on US submissions on Monday
London — WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will learn on Monday whether he has lost his long-running legal battle in the English courts to prevent his extradition from Britain to the US to face criminal charges, nearly all under the Espionage Act.
The following are some key events and details in Assange’s life:
July 1971 — Assange is born in Townsville, Australia, to parents involved in theatre. As a teenager, he gains a reputation as a computer programmer, and in 1995 is fined for computer hacking but avoids prison on condition he does not offend again.
2006 — He founds WikiLeaks, creating an internet-based “dead letter drop” for leakers of classified or sensitive information.
April 5 2010 — WikiLeaks releases leaked video from a US helicopter showing an air strike that killed civilians in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff.
July 25 2010 — WikiLeaks releases more than 91,000 documents, mostly secret US military reports about the Afghanistan war.
October 2010 — WikiLeaks releases 400,000 classified military files chronicling the Iraq war. The next month, it releases thousands of US diplomatic cables, including candid views of foreign leaders and blunt assessments of security threats.
November 18 2010 — A Swedish court orders Assange’s arrest over sex-crime allegations, which he denies. He is arrested in Britain the next month on a European arrest warrant but freed on bail.
February 2011 — London’s Westminster magistrate’s court orders Assange’s extradition to Sweden. He appeals.
June 14 2012 — The British supreme court rejects Assange’s final appeal and five days later he takes refuge in Ecuador’s embassy in London and seeks political asylum, which Ecuador grants in August 2012.
May 19 2017 — Swedish prosecutors discontinue their investigation, saying it is impossible to proceed while Assange is in the Ecuadorean embassy.
April 11 2019 — Assange is carried out of the embassy and arrested after Ecuador revokes his political asylum. He is sentenced on May 1 to 50 weeks in prison by a British court for skipping bail. He completes the sentence early but remains jailed pending extradition hearings.
May 13 2019 — Swedish prosecutors reopen their investigation and say they will seek Assange’s extradition to Sweden.
June 11 2019 — The US justice department formally asks Britain to extradite Assange to the US to face charges that he conspired to hack US government computers and violated an espionage law.
November 19 2019 — Swedish prosecutors drop their investigation, saying the evidence is not strong enough to bring charges, in part because of the passage of time.
February 21 2020 — A London court begins the first part of extradition hearings.
January 4 2021 — A British judge rules that Assange should not be extradited to the US to face criminal charges, saying his mental health problems mean he would be at risk of suicide.
December 10 2021 — The US wins an appeal against the ruling after a judge says he is satisfied with a US package of assurances about the conditions of Assange’s detention.
March 14 2022 — Britain’s supreme court refuses to grant Assange permission to appeal against a decision to extradite him to the US.
March 23 2022 — Assange marries his long-term partner, Stella Moris — the mother of his two children fathered inside the Ecuadorean embassy — inside a British high-security prison.
June 17 2022 — Britain orders Assange’s extradition to the US, a decision Assange appeals.
June 2023 — A judge at London’s high court rules Assange has no legal grounds to appeal.
February 20 2024 — Assange’s lawyers launch what his supporters say would be his final attempt to stop his extradition.
March 26 2024 — The extradition is put on hold after the court says the US must provide assurances that Assange would not face the death penalty.
On Monday, the court will decide if the submissions meet its requirement.
Reuters
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