WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange Set to Be Freed After Plea Deal with U.S. Justice Department
Julian Assange is to be set free.
Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, is set to plead guilty to a conspiracy charge as part of a plea agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, according to court documents filed on Monday. This development marks a significant turning point in a legal saga that has spanned over a decade.
Assange, who has been held in London's Belmarsh Prison for the past five years, is expected to appear in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands to enter his plea. The charge relates to conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defense information.
Under the terms of the plea deal, Assange is likely to be sentenced to 62 months in prison, with credit for time already served in British custody. This arrangement would effectively allow him to go free and return to his native Australia following the court proceedings.
The charges against Assange stem from WikiLeaks' publication of classified U.S. government documents beginning in 2009. These included war reports from Afghanistan and Iraq, State Department cables, and assessments of detainees at Guantánamo Bay. The U.S. government has long maintained that these disclosures compromised national security.
Assange's legal battles have been complex and prolonged. He spent seven years in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London to avoid extradition, before being arrested in 2019 when Ecuador withdrew his asylum. Since then, he has been fighting extradition to the United States.
The plea deal appears to bring an end to a case that has raised significant questions about press freedom and government transparency. Supporters of Assange have argued that his prosecution threatens journalistic freedoms, while critics contend that the WikiLeaks disclosures endangered lives and compromised intelligence operations.
The U.S. National Security Council has stated that the plea deal was an independent decision made by the Department of Justice, without White House involvement.
