Assange releases testimony from London questioning, says he is innocent

Julian Assange, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of WikiLeaks speaks via video link during a press conference on the occasion of the ten year anniversary celebration of WikiLeaks in Berlin, Germany, October 4, 2016. REUTERS/Axel Schmidt

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Wikileaks founder Julian Assange released on Wednesday his testimony from last month's London questioning in a Swedish rape investigation, saying he was innocent and that it was clear the sex was consensual. Assange, 45, has been holed up at Ecuador's London embassy since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden for the investigation of allegations, which he denies, that he committed rape in 2010. "You have been found to have subjected me to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. You have denied me effective legal representation in this process," Assange said in the testimony. He was questioned for two days at the Ecuadorian embassy in London in November. Ecuador has said it will deliver a written version of the testimony this month to Swedish prosecutors, who will then take a decision on if and how to continue with investigation. A U.N. panel said in February that his stay at the Ecuadorean embassy amounted to arbitrary detention, and that he should be let go and be awarded compensation. Assange, who is Australian, says he fears further extradition from Sweden to the United States, where a criminal investigation into the activities of Wikileaks is ongoing. A spokeswoman at the Swedish Prosecution Authority declined to comment. (Reporting by Daniel Dickson; Editing by Tom Heneghan)