diplomatic documents. The charges carry a
maximum sentence of 175 years in prison.
The prosecutors say Assange unlawfully
helped U.S. Army intelligence analyst
Chelsea Manning steal classified diplomatic
cables and military files that WikiLeaks later
published. Lawyers for Assange argue that
he was acting as a journalist and is entitled
to First Amendment freedom of speech
protections for publishing documents that
exposed U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq
and Afghanistan.
Assange’s fiancée, Stella Moris, urged U.S.
President Joe Biden to drop the prosecution
launched under his predecessor, Donald Trump.
Moris, who has two young sons with Assange,
said outside the High Court that the WikiLeaks
founder was “very unwell” in prison.
“He won his case in January. Why is he even
in prison?” she said.
“I’m appealing to the Biden administration
to do the right thing. This appeal was taken
two days before the Trump administration
left office, and if the Biden administration
is serious about respecting the rule of law,
the First Amendment and defending global
press freedom, the only thing it can do is
drop this case.”