WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrested after eviction from Ecuadorian Embassy in London
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, a scourge of American government officials for allegedly leaking classified and secret documents, has been arrested at the Ecuadorian residence in London, his longtime home. The arrest came after Ecuadorian officials evicted the Australian native. He had lived in the diplomatic compound for nearly seven years, initially shielding him from extradition to Sweden, where he was wanted on sexual assault charges. Swedish authorities later dropped the case, but Assange stayed inside the embassy out of fear of extradition to the United States, where federal authorities have long investigated him for espionage.
Assange became a player in the 2016 presidential race when WikiLeaks released thousands of emails that had been stolen from the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s campaign chairman John Podesta. American intelligence officials concluded the hacking was orchestrated by the Russian government. In London on Thursday, the Metropolitan Police said Assange had been arrested by officers at the embassy on a warrant issued by Westminster Magistrates’ Court in 2012, for failing to surrender to the court. In a statement, Metropolitan Police was "arrested on behalf of the United States authorities, at 10:53hrs after his arrival at a central London police station. This is an extradition warrant under Section 73 of the Extradition Act. He will appear in custody at Westminster Magistrates' Court as soon as possible." Video of a bearded Assange being dragged out of the embassy was posted to YouTube by Ruptly, which is owned by Russian state-owned news outlet RT. In a tweet sharing the video, WikiLeaks appears to quote Assange saying, "The U.K. must resist this attempt by the Trump administration."
British authorities have long made clear that Assange, 47, would not have diplomatic immunity if he left the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno said Assange's asylum has been taken away due to "repeated violations to international conventions and daily-life.”
WikiLeaks rose to international prominence in 2010 when it began releasing batches of classified American documents and other materials about actions of U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, along with confidential diplomatic cables sent between State Department officials. The material was consistently unflattering to U.S. officials, including live footage of exploding bombs and ordinances not typically seen outside of war zones. American officials said WikiLeaks put at risk the lives of U.S. service members and diplomats.
In 2016, the campaign of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton expressed scorn for WikiLeaks after it released hacked material from the DNC. That included revelations that party officials had, during the Democratic primary season, favored her candidacy over that of her rival, independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a socialist.
The documents showed DNC officials had, among other things, scheduled Clinton-Sanders debates for times fewer people were expected to tune in, such as opposite playoff football games and Christmas-season entertainment. Assange made clear he was no fan of Clinton, but he has insisted that he did not get the emails from Russia. Democrats, meanwhile, have consistently sought to link Assange and WikiLeaks to the 2016 campaign of President Trump.
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