A London court ruled on Monday that Julian Assange, the embattled WikiLeaks founder, could appeal his extradition to the United States, a move that opens a new chapter in his prolonged fight against being sent to America to face trial on espionage charges. Two High Court judges said they would allow a full appeal to be heard and gave Mr. Assange’s lawyers until Friday to submit a full case outline to the court. Mr. Assange, 52, has been held in Belmarsh, one of Britain’s highest-security prisons, in southeast London since 2019 as his fight against the extradition order has proceeded through the courts. Earlier this year, the High Court asked the American government to give assurances that Mr. Assange would be granted protections under the U.S. Constitution, including that he would not be denied constitutional rights automatically granted to Americans just because he is Australian and that the death penalty would not be imposed.

Source: The Times May 20, 2024 12:48 UTC