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WikiLeaks' Assange to accept arrest if UN denies appeal

───   08:35 Thu, 04 Feb 2016

WikiLeaks' Assange to accept arrest if UN denies appeal | News Article
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange/Wikipedia

London - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will respect a UN ruling on his case and accept arrest by British authorities at noon on Friday if it goes against him.


Assange, 44, an Australian national, has been sought by Swedish authorities since 2012 for questioning over allegations of rape.

Critics say the accusations were an attempt to possibly extradite him to the United States, where he could face charges over WikiLeaks' publication of classified  military  and  diplomatic  documents.

In June 2012, Assange took refuge in the the UK's Ecuadorian embassy - after Ecuador granted him political asylum - to avoid extradition to Swedenl. He has lived there for three-and-a-half years appealing his case to the UN.

"Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police, as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," a statement posted Thursday on  WikiLeaks' Twitter  page said.

"However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange added.

The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has been considering his case after an appeal by Assange that his time spent in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention.

Assange argued he has been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity.

-News24.com

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