Earlier, it became known that the founder of WikiLeaks Julian Assange reached an agreement with the US judiciary, which provides for a guilty plea to the illegal acquisition and disclosure of classified documents related to the military and diplomatic activities of the United States, in exchange for his release from Belmarsh prison in the UK ending the long-standing dispute between the UK and US.
The plane on which Assange departed from the United Kingdom was expected today at around 07:50 (Greece time) in Bangkok for refueling and water. It will then take off for Saipan, in the Mariana Islands, at around 17:00 (Greece time), a Thai official who asked not to be named told AFP. Saipan is one of the three islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, which is a territory of the United States.
The last chapter of his “Odyssey” is expected tomorrow Wednesday in a Saipan court. The sentence imposed on him will be offset against the period of his detention in Britain and Julian Assange will be released to return to his homeland, Australia.
“Julian is free!!!” said his ecstatic wife Stella Assange, underlining that “words are not enough to express our immense gratitude” to those who have mobilized “for years” to achieve his release.
WikiLeaks has released a video showing Julian Assange walking freely on an airport runway before boarding a plane.
In a post on the X platform (formerly Twitter), WikiLeaks hailed the outcome as the result of “a global campaign” that reached as far as the United Nations. “As he returns to Australia, we thank everyone who has supported us, fought for us, and remained fully committed to the fight for his freedom,” it says, adding: “Julian’s freedom is our freedom.”
“After more than five years in a 2x3m cell, isolated for 23 hours a day, he will soon be reunited with his wife Stella and their two children, who have only known their father behind bars,” WikiLeaks underlined.
For the past seven years, Assange had been residing in the Ecuadorian embassy in central London, seeking refuge to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he faced six charges of sex offenses, all of which were later dropped.
He consistently argued that extradition to Sweden would lead to subsequent extradition to the United States for his role in releasing hundreds of thousands of classified documents and diplomatic cables through WikiLeaks.
Following his forcible removal from the embassy in 2019 and subsequent imprisonment for parole violations, the United States initiated extradition proceedings against him.
US authorities allege that his actions compromised national security and endangered the lives of operatives. His numerous supporters argue that the prosecution is an injustice, an assault on journalism and freedom of speech, and retaliation for embarrassing Western governments.
