Politicians from WikiLeaks founder’s home country have flown to UK to visit him in jail
Boris Johnson should block attempts to extradite Julian Assange to the US, say two Australian MPs who have flown to the UK to visit the WikiLeaks founder.
Andrew Wilkie, an independent federal MP, said the extradition of Assange, who has been charged by the US with conspiring to hack into a secret Pentagon computer network, would set a dangerous precedent.
Continue reading...European assembly says WikiLeaks founder’s detention ‘sets dangerous precedent’
Julian Assange’s detention “sets a dangerous precedent for journalists”, according to politicians from the Council of Europe’s parliamentary arm, who voted on Tuesday to oppose the WikiLeaks founder’s extradition to the US.
The words of support for Assange and implicit criticism of the UK government will be contained in a final report produced by the Labour peer Lord Foulkes for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, which focuses on upholding human rights across the continent.
Continue reading...Foreign secretary calls decision a ‘denial of justice’ and says UK would have acted differently
The foreign secretary has condemned the US decision to refuse an extradition request for the suspect charged with causing the death of Harry Dunn, saying the UK would have “acted differently”.
Harry Dunn died after a crash outside a US military base in Croughton, Northamptonshire, on 27 August 2019.
Continue reading...Migration agent says housing and other economic factors are also driving residents to consider moving
Hong Kong’s continuing political unrest has led to a surge in applications from residents seeking to emigrate, including to Australia, and some migration agents are reporting a doubling in inquiries as the protests run into their third month.
Australia was the top destination for Hong Kong emigrants in 2018 – nearly a third (2,400) of the 7,600 Hongkongers who left last year went to Australia.
Continue reading...Plea agreement means Negar Ghodskani, whom Iran offered to swap for Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, faces five years’ jail and $369,000 fine
An Iranian mother at the centre of a legal and political tussle between Australia, Britain, the US and Iran has pleaded guilty in a Minneapolis court to being part of a conspiracy to evade US sanctions and “illegally export controlled technology”.
Negar Ghodskani, 40, was pregnant when arrested on a US warrant in Australia in 2017.
Continue reading...Let’s put it in plain words: the people of Hong Kong haven’t defeated the proposed extradition law to China yet – we have only earned a small window to catch our breath. And so have the hardliners in the administration and the Chinese government.
Related: Hong Kong protesters hold noisy rally outside police headquarters
Continue reading...The extradition bill, exorbitant house prices and high cost of living are driving a rise in emigration
Elisa Wong had always thought she would move away from Hong Kong when her seven-year-old daughter reached university age. But the recent political crisis has prompted her to reach for an application form to emigrate to Australia now.
“I must put in an application as quickly as possible,” the 45-year-old former manager at a bank said. “It’s hard to uproot your family and start again in a new country, but the upheavals in the past weeks have made up my mind.”
Continue reading...Chief executive adopts unapologetic, defensive tone and refuses to resign
Carrie Lam’s announcement that a controversial extradition bill had been suspended reinforced the Hong Kong chief executive’s reputation as a hard-nosed leader who can “put up a good fight”.
Throughout her press conference on Saturday, Lam adopted a resolute, unapologetic and defensive tone that her critics labelled arrogant and insincere.
Continue reading...British home secretary says final decision on WikiLeaks founder is ‘now with the courts’
The home secretary, Sajid Javid, has revealed he has signed a request for Julian Assange to be extradited to the US where he faces charges of computer hacking.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Thursday, Javid said: “He’s rightly behind bars. There’s an extradition request from the US that is before the courts tomorrow but yesterday I signed the extradition order and certified it and that will be going in front of the courts tomorrow.”
Continue reading...Debate on bill temporarily abandoned after tens of thousands surround Legislative Council building
Continue reading...Ruling prevents prosecutors from applying immediately for extradition warrant
An attempt to extradite Julian Assange to Sweden has suffered a setback after a court in Uppsala said he did not need to be detained.
The ruling by the district court prevents Swedish prosecutors from applying immediately for an extradition warrant for Assange to face an allegation of rape dating back to 2010. Assange denies the accusation.
Continue reading...Ozcan Keles accused of spreading propaganda, in latest targeting of Erdoğan critics
A British barrister who has given evidence to parliament is facing possible extradition to Turkey on terrorism charges over his Twitter activity.
Ozcan Keles, who is of Turkish descent and holds UK citizenship, appeared at Westminster magistrates court on Monday accused of spreading propaganda online.
Continue reading...Court had agreed to return Hashem Abedi, younger brother of the bomber, to UK
Plans by Libya to extradite the brother of the Manchester Arena suicide bomber to Britain have been put on hold while Tripoli remains under attack, the country’s interior minister has said.
Fathi Bashagha said a Libyan court had agreed to return 21-year-old Hashem Abedi – the younger brother of the bomber Salman Abedi – because he was a British citizen.
Continue reading...UK foreign secretaries wrote to assure Ecuador president over WikiLeaks founder’s extradition
Ecuador’s president, Lenín Moreno, was assured by two British foreign secretaries that Julian Assange would not be extradited to a country where he could face the death penalty, according to letters seen by the Guardian.
Letters signed by the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, and his predecessor Boris Johnson, dated 7 March 2018 and 10 August 2018 respectively, confirm a person cannot be extradited if they could face the death penalty, according to British legislation.
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