Assange vows more leaks, fears death penalty
Julian Assange
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange vowed today to step up the website's release of secret US cables as his defence team warned he could face the death penalty if he is extradited from Britain.
Lawyers for the Australian released documents outlining their case after a brief court appearance in London during which a judge ruled that Sweden's bid to extradite him would be heard in full on February 7-8.
Swedish authorities want to question Assange about allegations made by two women that he sexually assaulted them, but the 39-year-old insists the extradition attempt is politically motivated and linked to WikiLeaks' activities.
"Our work with WikiLeaks continues unabated and we are stepping up our publishing for matters related to 'cablegate' and other materials," Assange told reporters after the hearing at the high-security Woolwich Crown Court.
"Those will shortly be occurring through our newspaper partners around the world, big and small newspapers and some human rights organisations," added the former computer hacker, wearing a dark suit and tie.
He said he was "happy" with the outcome of the 10-minute hearing.
District Judge Nicholas Evans also agreed to change Assange's bail conditions for the full hearing, allowing him to stay at the Frontline Club, a media club in London, on the nights of February 6 and 7.
Assange has been living at the country estate of Vaughan Smith, one of the Frontline Club's founders, in eastern England since being released on bail on December 16, nine days after his arrest by British police on a Swedish warrant.
Despite the intense interest in the case, with more than 100 journalists from around the world packed into the court, Assange appeared relaxed in the dock, joking with two female prison officers.
Among the spectators in court were two of his high-profile supporters, socialite Jemima Khan and human rights campaigner Bianca Jagger.
Hours after the hearing Assange's lawyers released documents containing their draft argument, in which his barrister Geoffrey Robertson accused Swedish prosecutors of "corrupt" behaviour.
The papers claimed the main Swedish prosecutor did not have the right to issue a European arrest warrant as only Swedish police can do so, and argued that it should not have been issued when Assange was only wanted for questioning.
But the documents also repeated Assange's argument that the allegations against him are linked to the WikiLeaks' disclosures about the United States, where he faces a widening criminal probe as well as widespread vilification.
If Assange is extradited to Sweden there is a "real risk" he will face extradition or illegal rendition to the United States "where there will be a real risk of him being detained at Guantanamo Bay or elsewhere," they said.
"There is a real risk that he could be made subject to the death penalty. It is well-known that prominent figures have implied, if not stated outright, that Mr. Assange should be executed," the papers added.
The whistleblowing website has also released classified documents about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The cables were allegedly obtained by a renegade US soldier, Bradley Manning, now in custody.
A US court has reportedly subpoenaed the Twitter accounts of four WikiLeaks supporters as part of a criminal investigation into the leaks.
US Vice President Joe Biden last month described Assange as a "hi-tech terrorist."
In a statement overnight, Assange condemned the violent rhetoric against him by a number of US politicians and media commentators and demanded that those responsible face prosecution.
He drew parallels between the language used against him and WikiLeaks and accusations that similar rhetoric led to the shooting of Democratic congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona at the weekend.
"When senior politicians and attention-seeking media commentators call for specific individuals or groups of people to be killed, they should be charged with incitement -- to murder," Assange said.
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Cecil Herbert Jones
Jan 12th 2011, 11:08
Whistle-Blower sites would not need to exist if Mainstream Media did their job properly! But who owns and controls the Mainstream Media anyway?
Does Assange fear the death penalty by the mainstream media?
A. Fernandez
Jan 13th 2011, 07:42
Mainstream media are businesses. So as long as as they are making a profit - they are doing their job. As to your first question, Murdoch and Hearst spring to mind. Your second question I don't quite understand.
cecil herbert jones
Jan 13th 2011, 14:44
Mainstream Media never release information that whistle-blower sites release. Why not? Surely they'd boost their sales to no end if they did. Or is perhaps because there are other much more lucratives businesses at stake that have an indirect stake in the newspaper?This could be the same reason why Assange is reported by 'them' in less than respectable terms. I refer to subtle adjectives, like 'former computer hacker wearing a dark suit and tie' etc.
A. Fernandez
Jan 13th 2011, 20:28
...something more lucrative than increasing their sales figures? Now I wonder what that could be about.
cecil herbert jones
Jan 14th 2011, 10:12
@Mr Fernandez
Murdoch and Hearst are owners. My question was, 'Who controls?'
A. Fernandez
Jan 14th 2011, 14:03
I guess that's something someone with my social standing will never find out.
Peter Korsten
Jan 12th 2011, 08:31
On the BBC web site, his lawyers complained that the Swedish prosecution had leaked documents to the press. You have to admit that that is a little bit ironic.
E Gatt
Jan 12th 2011, 07:33
Some discussions and meetings have to be held behind closed doors or in private. Businesses, governments, friends and acquaintances, have always done it and have the right to keep things confidential. There is an accepted trend among some people that transparency should be king in all circumstances. I think we should resist our curiosity to get to know about the juicy bits of private conversations/deals, and defend the right to privacy instead.
Julian Assange’s allegations that he is facing the death penalty are unfounded, and I would be against it. However I would like to see Julian Assange brought to justice and sent to prison for being instrumental in leaking private conversations.
Dborg
Jan 12th 2011, 01:55
It's a sticky one. One the one hand, yes releasing / being accessory to the release of diplomatic communications - which let's face it most threw egg in the face of US diplomats since they are comments which one passes face to face - sets US relations(especially between the relevant ambassador and the state hosting him/her) back by miles and can be seen by a stretch of the imagination as sedition. On the other hand, the land of the free and the champion of freedoms of speech, cannot overshoot in its reaction (ignoring Mrs. Clinton's call for his head on a stake) for fear of undermining most of its "freedom" missions. One thing is certain, Assange is between a rock (US prosecution) and a hard place (financial isolation).
S Zammit
Jan 12th 2011, 01:45
Sometimes the world needs a marytr to wake up and change. Maybe Assange is one. Leaks are being supported world wide, if Assange is neutralised, i'm sure others will take his place. The world is fed up with the same old stories, even soldiers look like they're fed up because they're leaking information. We don't really want to read every leak but we want to know that the truth is there and is accessible. We want people in power to treat us with dignity and stop telling us the stories they need us to believe in. Only truthful unrestricted information can guarantee true freedom and democracy. How can anyone preach freedom and democracy and muzzles independent journalists at the same time?
Christian Sciberras
Jan 12th 2011, 09:23
Asange....a martyr?
He's just a guy with the materials to cause some popularity/instant-fame-fad, at the expense of the contributors.
I'm sorry to burst his (and his followers') bubble, but the world keeps on going, wikileaks or no wikileaks. What they did was damaging US relations with other countries.
Nothing really of international importance.
Robert Agius
Jan 12th 2011, 10:05
The world keeps moving on or changes depending on what is being fed to the people.
'He's just a guy with the materials to cause some popularity/instant-fame-fad, at the expense of the contributors.' Can you explain to me what a journalist's job entails? also, who has protected the sources and who is attacking them? They did not damage the US relations ONLY.
'Nothing really of international importance.' - Laughable.
Christian Sciberras
Jan 13th 2011, 20:28
Robert Agius - It's not of international importance since although this person got to damage international relations, fortunately, it's not enough to actually cause any repercussions, which is also exactly why governments haven't actually lifted a finger against him.
And don't say telling his ISPs to shut him down to doing anything conceivable against him.
Either case, what is laughable is how the media can easily move people around....and how people like you get easily suckered into it.
Jesmond Micallef
Jan 12th 2011, 01:23
Why is it that people need or have to be afraid from what is genuinely the truth behind a matter, whatever that matter is ? What about the undercover and highly secretive nature of governmental secret services worldwide which existence, each and every government acknowledges ? Out spoken politicians and dissidents have always been targeted, some have endured hardship in prisons, others endured exile, while others were murdered or executed outright, yet again people call these "heroes" or "role models" of freedom and democracy. We now read of exposure through internet use such as this latest undertaking by wikileaks, what will the outcome be, here ?
One small step for man, one large step for mankind, I guess !!
Martin Cassar
Jan 12th 2011, 01:22
What credibility will the USA government have when it speaks about freedom of expression and freedom of speech to regimes in places like Iran,Libya, China, Zimbabwe or Belarus?
Read USA's most Talibanstic re-action against Twitter:
http://euobserver.com/9/31614/?rk=1
Patrick Mallia
Jan 12th 2011, 00:09
Here are some more links Pace
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYTxuW2vmzk
WikiLeaks video: 'Collateral murder' in Iraq
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbqmr5rtdOs
Collateral Murder - Wikileaks - Iraq - original video
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=collateral+murder&aq=f
Lots of links
Go see them Pace and see what the American MURDERERS do around the world.
A Cardona
Jan 11th 2011, 23:01
Whatever or whoever the US does not feel is sticking to its rules is labeled as a "terrorist".
Assange is now a high tech terrorist lol. Thought US is the land of the free... but not free speech and honesty apparently. Or have the values there become so rotten that that if anyone speaks the truth then s/he becomes a terrorist?
Come on stop this bu**s***. Now i realize why BS is associated with the US. Very nice and great people ...however very stupid politicians.
Long Live Assange!
Martin Cassar
Jan 11th 2011, 20:02
EU health commissioner (our Dr. Dalli), Spain and the Vatican Spain a key ally of pro-GMO America, cables reveal 20.12.2010 EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The US and Spain have collaborated closely in order to defend GMO production within the EU, while the Vatican is also quietly supportive of the controversial technology, US diplomatic cables have revealed. The cables' release comes just days after the European Commission was handed a petition of over one million signatures calling for a GMO ban in Europe, with EU environment ministers set to discuss recent EU proposals on the subject in Brussels on Monday (20 December). Greenpeace activists protest against GMO crops - known by some as 'Frankenfoods' (Photo: Greenpeace) Shortly after Germany decided to ban MON810 corn cultivation in April 2009, and facing rising opposition within his own country, Spanish secretary of state and deputy minister Josep Puxeu contacted US officials to call for support, according to a US cable dated 19 May 2009 . http://euobserver.com/?aid=31544
Martin Cassar
Jan 11th 2011, 19:52
How much does it cost to handshakes Mr. Obama? 30.11.2010 @ 09:45 CET EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – European governments negotiating with the US on the resettlement of Guantanamo Bay inmates asked for money and meetings with Barack Obama, while others refused to accept Chinese Uighurs for fear of upsetting Beijing, diplomatic cables disclosed by WikiLeaks show. Following Barack Obama's pledge to close the 'terror camp' at Guantanamo Bay by January 2010, America's diplomats engaged in frantic efforts to convince EU governments to take in some of the 60 former terrorism suspects who were free to go, but who could or did not want to return to their home countries. Pleasee read full report http://euobserver.com/891/31385
malcolm seychell
Jan 11th 2011, 19:47
u hawn minn haseb obama se jibdel id dinja!!!!!. kieku kien ghad hemm bush dan ghamluh hero imma la hemm obama imexxi storja ohra. dan pingewh kriminal ghax kixef il verita.
SPace
Jan 11th 2011, 19:46
Assange had no right to do what he did. Firstly, emails intended for private use should remain private, be it of individuals or entities. There is no moral or journalistic excuses. Especially if they put people's lives directly in danger. Secondly, apparently, he is only after the US, when other countries have their wrongdoings too. One can argue a lot which and what wars were illegal, but saying that america killed millions is a puerile generalisation. Are we going to see Chinese or Russian embassies' emails? Thirdly, by his leaks, exposing what is considered as strategic, he is not only endangering the US, but the whole of the western world, including malta. Fourthly, most other leaks, though they are a bit embarassing, are nothing to scandalise about. I dont object to these as long as they do not mention names. Lastly, he made lots of enemies, numerously and powerfully, and I dont pity him if he considers himself on borrowed time. When you do such things, you have to face consequences. US is neither a saint nor a villain. Even lately, their intervention in europe, specifically in the balkans, saved lots of further bloodshed. And there is no oil there.
Joe Dimech
Jan 11th 2011, 19:58
Did you read the other posts before you posted. You could have saved yourself time.........................and embarrassment.
SPace
Jan 11th 2011, 20:06
Joe Dimech As if I am influenced or care for that matter, by what others write. Not that I didnt read them. And I have nothing to be embarassed about, cause I am convinced of what I am writing. Now, are you ready to publish your inbox? Cause for sure, everybody has something to hide. Fact remains, Assange is not doing the world any good service.
Robert Agius
Jan 12th 2011, 10:16
Where did you learn about democracy Space (pun intended)? What, according to you, is democracy? Good luck to you answering the questions without contradicting yourself...
Martin Cassar
Jan 11th 2011, 19:36
As far as I know no one single person any where on planet earth is being killed or endangered as a sequences of Wikileaks great job that shed lights on many global issue and would help re-writing the history. Historian have a great job a head indeed! Yet …..The USA [ selling itself as the beacon of both democracy and freedom of speech...etc] killed countless number of civilians at home and practically in each corner of the Globe. I sincerely hope Mr. Assange will have apolitical trial. Could this happen?
Dr Andrew Azzopardi
Jan 11th 2011, 18:59
What a drama queen! I am amazed at the way the international media panders to Mr Assange's self-importance.
Dr. Noel Cutajar
Jan 11th 2011, 19:33
May I suggest to watch a video released by wikileaks showing the killings of several people unarmed by an Apache helicopter in Iraq and see who is the drama queen.
SPace
Jan 11th 2011, 19:50
Surely a case of a mistake. I've also seen videos of the twin towers going down (civilians), though it only justify the invasion of Afghanistan. Iraq was a great mistake, but even Saddam, killed thousands of his people, and many iraqis cheered his hanging.
Stephen Florian
Jan 11th 2011, 19:59
Drama queen...??? Which planet do you live on Andrew ? Time to wake up to reality....
Martin Cassar
Jan 11th 2011, 20:21
SPace Have a look on this one please. Something FOX NEWS and CNN keeps away from you and your ilk! http://whatreallyhappened.com/WRHARTICLES/hundreds.html?q=hundreds.html
SPace
Jan 11th 2011, 20:41
Martin Cassar, I read almost every conspiracy theory about 9/11, and it's not that I discredit all of them.
There are ways of exposing American wrongdoing anywhere in the world, and Assange's is not the best one, especially as in his initially frenzy he exposed anti-Taliban collaborators.
Michael Moore, on the other hand, did it effectively.
Patrick Mallia
Jan 12th 2011, 00:05
Mistake SPace? Do you really know what you are saying? Have a look at the video and see for yourself the cold-blooded murderers did to the innocent civilians as they used to do in Vietnam. I can fill a whole edition with links on the times about he atrocities committed by the Americans all over the world.
Heer are a few links Pace. Go see the videos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rXPrfnU3G0&has_verified=1
Collateral Murder - Wikileaks - Iraq
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zok8yMxXEwk
Collateral Murder?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-byU_92NcN8
Collateral Murder
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=to3Ymw8L6ZI
Collateral Murder - Iraq
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kelmEZe8whI
WikiLeaks' Collateral Murder: U.S. Soldier Ethan McCord
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sSuEf4BAVk
2 soldiers in 'Collateral Murder' video apologize
S Zammit
Jan 12th 2011, 01:10
Anyone believing the twin towers really collapsed from those airplane crashes is just plain dumb and gullible on my books. People in power need people like you to do what they want to do. They give you a story, you believe without question and support their cause by accepting consciously (or not) that they are right just because they told you so on tv. Shocking on this day and age with information just clicks away. Keep in mind that hitler controlled the media to manipulate people's thinking 70 years ago. Control on media by the powerful and mass manipulation are not something new but they still manage to exploit human ignorance and complacency over and over again.
Robert Agius
Jan 12th 2011, 10:11
...and my respect for doctorship slips further down... Not your field of studies I reckon.
J Farrugia
Jan 11th 2011, 18:12
Good - that's the way traitors die. He is endangering other people's lives and so he must be a man and accept the consequences of his own treachery. For money he is selling other people's lives.
Christopher Camilleri
Jan 11th 2011, 18:27
He's not a traitor. He would have been one if he was American.
Benny McArthy
Jan 11th 2011, 18:37
Endangering other peoples lives? The ones he is exposing, the ones who are calling for his head are the ones who are responsible for killing millions in illegal wars. Please dont play the Yankee record, the world is fed up of hearing it.
R Saliba
Jan 11th 2011, 18:44
P McAlister
Jan 11th 2011, 18:45
So Mr Farrugia, you are happy living in a world where the people who are their to protect us are really and truly the ones who are destroying us? You really need to wake up and smell the roses, what Assange did is show the world powers that no one is untouchable. Also may I ask what lifes are you talking about? the ones where American soldiers killed INNOCENT journalists? Where the so called war on terror basically means invading someones country and forcing them to become puppets and if they choose not to they are shot/tourchered?
FN Farrugia
Jan 11th 2011, 18:45
no wonder this world is a complete mess with people like you J.Farrugia.. how is Assange a traitor?.. tell me he is risking his life to tell you what the big brother don't want you to know.. and here you are calling him a traitor.
N. Bonello
Jan 11th 2011, 18:49
Can you explain "endangering other people's lives". WikiLeaks has been very careful to protect sensitive names/identity of both American and Foreigners. As for the politicians and diplomats - well that's another story.
Please choose the reason of your report below: