LONDON, May 20, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange could
find out on Monday whether he has won a reprieve in his last-ditch UK legal
battle to avoid extradition to the United States.

The Australian national, aged 52, is seeking permission to appeal against a
ruling allowing him to be sent to face a US trial on espionage charges.

The two High Court judges in London handling Assange's request adjourned the
case in March, asking US government lawyers to return with "satisfactory
assurances" about free speech protections and that he would not face the
death penalty if convicted.

Those submissions are expected to be presented at a hearing on Monday, and
the judges could issue a ruling immediately afterwards.

If his appeal is successful, Assange will have further opportunities to argue
his case before the UK's domestic courts.

If he loses, he will have exhausted all his UK legal options and could be
swiftly extradited, ending a five-year legal battle that has pitted the
Washington and London governments against free-speech campaigners.

Assange's only hope would then be to appeal to the European Court of Human
Rights, which could order a stay on the extradition if it decides there are
"exceptional circumstances".

It would also require London to accept the order, which is uncertain given
the ongoing dispute with the European court which blocked the government's
plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda.

Assange has been detained in the high-security Belmarsh Prison, southeast
London, since April 2019.

He was arrested after spending seven years holed up in Ecuador's London
embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he faced accusations of sexual
assault that were eventually dropped.

- 'Corrupt' -

The US authorities want to put the publisher on trial for divulging US
military secrets about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Assange is accused of publishing some 700,000 confidential documents relating
to US military and diplomatic activities, starting in 2010.

The United States is attempting to convict Assange under the 1917 Espionage
Act, which his supporters warn mean he could be sentenced to 175 years in
prison.

The UK courts approved the extradition request after the United States vowed
to not imprison him in its most extreme prison, "ADX Florence", nor to
subject him to the harsh regime known as "Special Administrative Measures".

His supporters last Wednesday criticised the legal proceedings he has faced.

"It is abundantly clear of course that the process in the court in the United
Kingdom is corrupt. The case is rigged against Julian," Kristinn Hrafnsson,
WikiLeaks' editor-in-chief, told reporters.

Stella Assange said she hoped her husband would be present at Monday's
hearing but added that she did not expect the judges to rule in his favour.

"I don't expect a rational outcome from the courts, I'm afraid to say," she
said.

Assange's supporters say his health is fragile and the Council of Europe this
week voiced concern about his treatment.

The United States indicted Assange multiple times between 2018 and 2020 but
President Joe Biden has faced persistent domestic and international pressure
to drop the case filed under his predecessor Donald Trump.

Biden indicated recently that the United States was considering a request
from Australia to drop the charges.

"President Biden has the chance still to be the president who put an end to
this, who acted in the interest of press freedom in journalism," said Rebecca
Vincent, of Reporters Without Borders (RSF).