A British judge ruled on Monday that WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange should not be extradited to the United States to face charges of breaking a spying law and conspiring to obtain secret US documents by hacking government computers.
US authorities accuse Australian-born Assange of 18 counts relating to Wikileaks’ release of vast troves of confidential US military records and diplomatic cables which they said had put lives in danger.
His lawyers had argued the entire prosecution was politically-motivated, powered by US President Donald Trump and that his extradition posed a severe threat to the work of journalists.
At a hearing at London's Old Bailey, Judge Vanessa Baraitser rejected nearly all his legal team's arguments but said she could not extradite him as there was a real risk he would commit suicide and ordered his discharge.
"Faced with conditions of near total isolation... I am satisfied that the procedures (outlined by US authorities) will not prevent Mr. Assange from finding a way to commit suicide," she said.
Trump says US needs to own Greenland to deter Russia, China
Kyiv scrambles to repair ruined power grid after Russian attack
Swiss prosecutors summon owners of ski resort bar after deadly blaze
Death toll in Philippines landfill collapse rises to 4
Australian bushfires raze homes, cut power to tens of thousands
