Yahoo News Defence lawyers to seek asylum in France for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange
Julian Assange’s European defence team has said it will try seek asylum in France for the WikiLeaks founder as he faces extradition to the US.
“We consider the situation is sufficiently serious that our duty is to talk about it with President Emmanuel Macron," prominent French lawyer Eric Dupont-Moretti said.
He was one of a team of lawyers lined up at a Paris news conference to explain why they view the case against the 48-year-old as unfair, evoking his poor health and alleged violations of his rights while in jail in London.
They also warned of “consequences for all journalists” if Assange is extradited and jailed in the US.
Assange's trial for extradition to the US on spying charges starts next week in London.
French members of the team said they have been working on a “concrete demand” for Mr Macron to grant Assange asylum in France, where he has children and where WikiLeaks was present at its founding.
“It is not an ordinary demand,” lawyer Antoine Vey said, noting that Assange is not on French soil.
Baltasar Garzon, the Spanish co-ordinator of Assange’s team, reiterated his client’s plan to claim during his extradition hearing that the Trump administration offered him a pardon.
The alleged condition was that Assange must agree to say that Russia was not involved in leaking Democratic National Committee emails during the 2016 US election campaign.
The White House has firmly denied the claim.
Labour politician visited Assange on Thursday at Belmarsh prison in southeast London where they spoke for two hours.
Speaking afterwards at the prison gates, Mr McDonnell said Assange should not be extradited to the US because it would "damage the democratic standing" of the UK.
Mr McDonnell said: “I think this is one of the most important and significant political trials of this generation, in fact longer.
“I think it’s the Dreyfus case of our age.
“The way in which a person is being persecuted for political reasons, for simply exposing the truth for what went on in relation to recent wars.”
Mr McDonnell was referring to the 1895 conviction at a court martial of French officer Alfred Dreyfus on treason charges many felt were brought against him because he was Jewish.
He was later exonerated after a long campaign featuring intellectuals such as novelist Emile Zola who wrote a denunciation of the prosecution case entitled J’Accuse (I accuse).
Mr McDonnell said: “We’re hoping that in court he (Assange) is able to defeat the extradition bid.
“We don’t believe that extradition should be used for political purposes.”
Assange is wanted in the US to face 18 charges, including conspiring to commit computer intrusion, over the publication of US cables a decade ago.
If found guilty he could face up to 175 years in jail.
He is accused of working with former US army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to leak hundreds of thousands of classified documents.
Assange spent seven years in Ecuador’s London embassy before being evicted in April 2019.
He was arrested by British police for jumping bail in 2012.
In November, Sweden dropped a sex crimes investigation against him because so much time had elapsed.
Read more
Ex-Republican congressman denies offering Assange pardon from Trump
Donald Trump 'offered to pardon Julian Assange', court told
Australian MPs call on Johnson to block Assange extradition hearing
Doctors call for end to 'psychological torture' of Julian Assange
