Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has expressed dismay at the UK Supreme Court’s decision to refuse permission for WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange to appeal his extradition.
The court decision on March 14 means Assange is a step closer to a U.S. trial on espionage charges.
The court said his application to appeal did not raise “an arguable point of law”.
RSF said the case is “overwhelmingly in the public interest, and it deserved review by the highest court in the UK.”
It said Assange’s fate has once again become a political decision, adding: “We call on the Home Office to act in the interest of journalism and press freedom by refusing extradition and releasing Assange from prison without further delay.”
The U.S. accuses Assange of conspiring to hack into US military databases to acquire sensitive secret information relating to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars.
The documents published on WikiLeaks revealed how the U.S. military had killed hundreds of civilians in unreported incidents during the war in Afghanistan and the leaked Iraq war files showed 66,000 civilians had been killed, and prisoners tortured by Iraqi forces.
Assange’s appeal to the Supreme Court was based on a point of law that a lower court had incorrectly ruled on the risk to Assange’s health and safety if he was extradited.
Supreme Court denies Assange permission to appeal
RSF expresses dismay
Supreme Court opens door to appeal – January 24 2022
High Court rules for U.S. against Assange – 10 December 2021
The WikiLeaks revelations
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