WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is fighting his extradition from the UK to the US, has filed an appeal with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), the European court confirmed to Reuters on Friday.
Arrested by British police in 2019 after seven years in confinement at the Ecuadorian embassy in London, Julian Assange is currently being held in the UK, in a high-security prison near London.
He is already awaiting the examination of his appeal, before the High Court in London, against the decision of the British government to extradite him. The first hearing is scheduled for early 2023.
Julian Assange’s brother, Gabriel Shipton, told Reuters earlier in the week that he believed US authorities would want to prevent the case from reaching the European Court of Human Rights. According to him, the European media and public are more sympathetic to his cause than those in Britain or the United States.
He faces 175 years in prison.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albese also said Wednesday that he had personally called on US officials to end legal proceedings against the WikiLeaks founder.
Last Monday, five media (The New York Times, The Guardian, El País, Le Monde and Der Spiegel) also called on the US government to drop the charges against Julian Assange.
The whistleblower faces, as a reminder, 175 years in prison and is wanted by US authorities for 18 charges, including one for spying on confidential military files.
Source: BFM TV
