Julian Assange Refuses to be Extradited

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May 2, 2019

Wikileaks’ founder Julian Assange told a British judge that he plans on fighting extradition requests from the United States.

In the first hearing of a battle that’s expected to drag out for months, Assange has made it clear that he will not go down without a fight against the extradition charges placed against him.

The next court date in this process will be on May 30.

Assange faces charges for conspiring with Chelsea Manning to break into a government computer.

This charge comes with a maximum prison sentence of 5.5 years.

Assange was asked if he would agree to surrender to U.S. authorities, a proposition that Assange ended up rejecting.

According to a Washington Times report, Assange told Judge Michael Snow that “I do not wish to surrender myself for extradition for doing journalism that’s won many, many awards and affected many people.”

This appearance came the day after he received a 50-week sentence for skipping bail in 2012.

BLP covered Assange’s arrest on April 11, 2019, which received praise from establishment political figures across the political spectrum.

On the other hand, independent journalists like Paul Joseph Watson came to Assange’s defense for his valiant efforts to challenge legacy institutions and expose the political class’s corruption.

Assange’s leaks throughout the 2016 campaign season arguably played a substantial role in getting Donald Trump elected.