WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange was released from a UK prison yesterday morning, his team reports. He had been detained for five years at London's Belmarsh Prison, fighting extradition to the US on 18 counts of leaking classified information.
Recent court documents suggest that Assange is likely to accept a plea deal to avoid further jail time.
"Julian Assange is free. He left Belmarsh maximum security prison on the morning of June 24, after 1,901 days," WikiLeaks announced on X (formerly Twitter). "After the High Court in London approved his bail, he was released and departed the UK from Stansted airport in the afternoon."
WikiLeaks attributes the success of Assange's release to a global campaign that facilitated "prolonged negotiations with the US Department of Justice, leading to a still-pending agreement."
"Our thanks go to everyone who supported us, fought for us, and remained committed to securing his freedom as he returns to Australia," WikiLeaks expressed.
A DOJ letter indicates that Assange is due for a court appearance in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands, a US territory in the Pacific, at 9 am local time on Wednesday. The letter expects Assange to plead guilty to a charge of conspiring to illegally obtain and disseminate classified US national defense information.
The DOJ expects Assange to return to Australia after the proceedings.
For more information, read: Assange achieves a significant win in his US extradition case.
Under Assange's leadership, WikiLeaks published numerous classified documents, including those related to the US military actions in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as a trove of US diplomatic cables. In 2010, the organization released video footage showing a US military helicopter engaging civilians in Baghdad in 2007, mistaking them for insurgents.
In 2012, Assange hosted 'The World Tomorrow' on RT. Across 12 episodes, the show delved into various contentious issues, featuring guests such as Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, former Guantanamo Bay inmate Moazzam Begg, and former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan.