Supporters of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange gathered Monday morning in front of the Westminster Magistrates Court in London, where the next hearing on his extradition to the U.S. will be held,
This is reported by RIA Novosti.
Assange is expected to attend the hearing in person.
Several dozen people have come to support the defendant, demanding his release.
“Release Julian Assange!”, “Free the journalist! Julian’s freedom is our freedom!” – are chanting from the audience.
In December, the court set the procedure for the extradition hearing of the founder of WikiLeaks, appointing technical sessions in January and February. A hearing on the merits is scheduled for late February.
Assange, accused of sexual harassment and rape in Sweden in 2010, has been in hiding since June 2012 at the Ecuadorian embassy in London for fear of extradition to the Nordic country. In the morning of 11 April 2019, he was detained at the request of the United States. A court in London found him guilty of violating bail conditions and sentenced him to 11 months in prison. The extradition hearing began on 2 May.
U.S. authorities reported at the end of May that new charges were brought against Assange in 17 episodes of violating the law on espionage and disclosure of classified information. Earlier, he was charged with one count of conspiracy to break into a computer. If extradited to the U.S., Assanzhu faces years in prison.