Assange Arrest Warrant on Rape Charges Upheld by Appeals Court in Sweden
A Swedish appeals court upheld an arrest warrant on rape charges for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
The ruling means that an international arrest warrant for Assange is valid, the Swedish Prosecution Authority said today. The court made an “adjustment” to the warrant that the crime is regarded as “less serious,” the court said.
Bjoern Hurtig, Assange’s lawyer, said he would appeal the case to the supreme court. “We are disappointed, but are hopeful about an appeal after the court changed the wording,” Hurtig said.
Sweden’s criminal police had issued an international warrant for Assange, Interpol said on Nov. 20. He had been under investigation on rape charges in Sweden since August.
The alleged crimes occurred while Assange was in Sweden delivering lectures on WikiLeaks’ publishing of classified U.S. military documents related to the war in Afghanistan. Hurtig said his client didn’t commit any crimes.
WikiLeaks.org receives confidential material that governments and businesses want to keep secret and posts the information on the Internet “so readers and historians alike can see evidence of the truth,” the organization says on its website.
To contact the reporter on this story: Janina Pfalzer in Stockholm at jpfalzer@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Angela Cullen at acullen8@bloomberg.net.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange
Bertil Ericson/AFP/Getty Images
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Photographer: Bertil Ericson/AFP/Getty Images
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