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WikiLeaks' Assange Hopes To Exit London Embassy "Soon"

An anonymous reader writes Julian Assange has hosted a press conference in which he indicated he is soon about to leave the embassy of Ecuador in London. From the article: "WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who has spent over two years in Ecuador's London embassy to avoid a sex crimes inquiry in Sweden, said on Monday he planned to leave the building 'soon', but Britain signaled it would still arrest him if he tried. Assange made the surprise assertion during a news conference alongside Ecuador's Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino. But his spokesman played down the chances of an imminent departure, saying the British government would first need to revise its position and let him leave without arrest, something it has repeatedly refused to do.

6 of 299 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Hello! by jellomizer · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Yea Snowden really took his thunder away.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  2. Re:How many years could he be charged with? by phantomfive · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Except per Swedish and EU law tht would be illegal. I dot know why you people keep bringing it up.

    That doesn't mean it won't happen.

    I don't think it will, but stranger things have happened and I understand his concern.

    --
    "First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
  3. Re:How many years could he be charged with? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It was also illegal in the EU for poland to host a CIA torture site. That doesn't mean it didn't happen. Its illegality is small comfort to those that suffered there. If not illegal, it was extremely uncouth for France, Spain, Portugal and Austria to collude in bringing down the Bolivian Presidential plane down to search it for Snowden. I get the impression that most western European countries seem to be quite happy to ignore their laws and customs if the US government asks/tells them to.

  4. Re:How many years could he be charged with? by the+grace+of+R'hllor · · Score: 5, Insightful

    There's law, and there's international diplomacy. If they yank him out of an embassy, every embassy is at risk of wanton search, and you can say goodbye to diplomatic immunity. If, at some point, Sweden extradites Assange to the US and there's a bit of outcry, they'll say "Oops, maybe we shouldn't have done that", and there will be no repercussions (except for Assange).

    I haven't heard Sweden state that they will categorically not extradite him to the US, though.

  5. Re:How many years could he be charged with? by nbauman · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If the Swedish charges against him were legitimate he could.

    Are you suggesting......it might not have been a legitimate rape?

    Under Swedish law, when you have sex with your girlfriend, you've raped her if you have a fling with a young chick afterwards.

    You had sex with her under false pretenses: giving her the impression that she's your girlfriend now.

    Sweden is a feminist paradise.

  6. Re:Hello! by penguinoid · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Over here! Look at me! I'm still here!

    When a bunch of powerful people want to quietly vanish you, staying in the public's awareness could save your life.

    --
    Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways