Advertisement

Assange's lawyers mull prosecutor's response

The Local/ms
The Local/ms - [email protected]
Assange's lawyers mull prosecutor's response
Julian Assange has appeared at several political events via a video link. Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth

Lawyers acting for Wikileaks founder Julian Assange have been given fresh documents by the chief prosecutor considering his appeal against a European Arrest Warrant, and have until November 3rd to respond.

Advertisement

The Svea Court of Appeal in Stockholm has been considering whether or not to drop the arrest warrant against Julian Assange, who is wanted over rape and sexual assault allegations made by two women in Sweden.

A spokesperson for the court told The Local that the chief prosecutor Marianne Ny had "responded" to the Australian's appeal on Monday afternoon and that the relevant legal documents outlining her response were now being considered by Assange's legal team.

If the court accepts his appeal, it could mean that Julian Assange is able to leave the Ecuadorian embassy where he has been holed up for the past two years since he was granted political asylum there.

The Wikileaks founder has said he fears arrest if he leaves the embassy and that if he is called to stand trial in Sweden, he may also be sent to the United States to face charges linked to WikiLeaks publishing a horde of sensitive military and diplomatic communications.

Swedish prosecutors said last month that the idea was "far-fetched".

Last week, Assange commented on the upcoming appeal judgement in the Swedish court case.

"We will win because the law is very clear. My only hope is that the court is following the law and is not pressured politically to do anything outside of the law," he said via a video link screened at a human rights film festival in Barcelona.

"As time goes by, political pressure decreases and understanding increases. So I am very confident I will not remain in this situation. I'm completely confident," Assange said.

The British government has said it hopes that Swedish prosecutor Marianne Ny will travel to London to question Assange.

On Monday, Wikileaks published an extract of Julian Assange's new book, in which he claims that Google has been colluding with the US government.

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also