Julian Assange 160 diplomats release, World leaders urge UK not extradite Assange to US

 Julian Assange 160 diplomats release, World leaders urge UK not extradite Assange to US.

More than 160 current and former world leaders, lawmakers and diplomats have endorsed a call for the U.K. to free WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and stop his extradition to the U.S.

The signatories of the open letter, addressed to U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and several government ministers, included the president of Argentina and two former presidents of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Assange, 49, is currently fighting extradition to the U.S. where he faces up to 175 years in prison on espionage charges over WikiLeaks' release of confidential diplomatic cables in 2010 and 2011. The letter was first written by the group Lawyers for Assange in August, and then received the support of the international signatories whose names were released on Monday.

It laid out several legal reasons why Assange shouldn’t be extradited, including the claim that he wouldn’t face a fair trial in the U.S., and that he would “be exposed to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”

His extradition “would gravely endanger freedom of the press,” the letter said.

“This demonstrates the growing opposition around the world to U.S. efforts to extradite and prosecute Assange, and the political nature of this case,” Assange's lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, told NBC News.

Many of the letter’s signatories, which also include Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and former Ecuadoran leader Rafael Correa, are fierce critics of the U.S. and have previously spoken out against American foreign policy.

Commentaires

Enregistrer un commentaire

Posts les plus consultés de ce blog

Dark web drug bust, $6.5 million from 179 alleged drug dealers

 Dark web drug bust, $6.5 million from 179 alleged drug dealers. The US Justice Department announced the largest dark web bust it has ever helped carry out, seizing more than 1,100 pounds of drugs from 179 alleged online dealers around the world. The US worked with police in Europe to carry out the investigation, seizing more than $6.5 million in cash and virtual currencies.  Operation DisrupTor -- named after the  private web browser Tor  frequently used to access the dark web -- was led by police in Germany, along with US law enforcement agencies and Europol.  The majority of the arrests took place in the US with 121 cases, followed by 42 cases in Germany, eight cases in the Netherlands, four cases in the United Kingdom, three cases in Austria and one case in Sweden. Police said investigations are still ongoing to identify people behind these dark web accounts.  The  dark web is a catch-all name  for hidden parts of the internet that you can't e...
Lire la suite

Jacinda Ardern social distancing, mob of fans on the campaign trail.

Jacinda Ardern social distancing, mob of fans on the campaign trail. New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has landed herself in hot water after she abandoned social distancing to take a selfie with a mob of fans on the campaign trail. Ms Ardern was at Massey University in Palmerston North last week as she campaigns as Labour leader for the upcoming election. New Zealanders will be heading to the polls on October 17 this year, after an outbreak of  coronavirus  in the country led to the government delaying the election by just under a month. The selfie included at least 17 people including Ms Ardern, none of whom were wearing masks. Under current restrictions, New Zealanders are supposed to keep two metres distance to stop the spread of COVID-19. But Ms Ardern was mobbed by supporters while leaving the university, and after reportedly asking for space, she acquiesced and took the selfie with the group. Ms Ardern  has now apologised for the selfie, saying “it wa...
Lire la suite

Vanessa Bryant lawsuit, "biggest threat to the sanctity of the victims"

 Vanessa Bryant lawsuit, "biggest threat to the sanctity of the victims". Vanessa Bryant,  widow of NBA legend Kobe Bryant,  filed a lawsuit against Los Angeles county and its sheriff’s office over photos shared by first responders of the helicopter crash that killed her husband and daughter earlier this year. The complaint, filed last week but obtained by NBC News on Tuesday, accuses the county employees of  having “showed off” photos of the remains of Kobe Bryant and 13-year-old Gianna Bryant . The father and daughter died in a helicopter crash on Jan. 29 along with seven others as they traveled to a basketball tournament in Thousand Oaks, California, where the 13-year-old was supposed to play. Bryant expressed concern to the sheriff that the helicopter crash site was unprotected against paparazzi and was assured law enforcement would secure the scene, according to the lawsuit. “But the biggest threat to the sanctity of the victims’ remains proved to be the Sheriff...
Lire la suite