The United States has requested his extradition as part of a civil complaint by a former employee regarding inappropriate behavior. But Assange fears that the US wants to prosecute him because he revealed American state secrets via Wikileaks, including all diplomatic cables from the State Department.
Assange's lawyers previously convinced the London judges at a hearing that the Australian should be allowed to present his arguments in a full appeals process. The key question was whether Assange, as a foreign national, could invoke the right to freedom of expression in the US. The British judges initially postponed their decision at the end of March and demanded guarantees from the US. However, these initially failed to convince the court.
The High Court in London has now decided that Julian Assange can appeal against his extradition to the US. The Wikileaks founder faces the risk of a long prison sentence there.
The US government wants to try the Australian on espionage charges. He faces a prison sentence of up to 175 years. The US government accuses him of stealing and publishing classified material about military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, endangering the lives of American informants.
Assange’s supporters, however, see him as a target of the judiciary in Washington due to his exposure of American war crimes.
In addition to the ongoing appeals process, Assange’s supporters will likely pin their hopes mainly on a political solution. The Australian government is currently campaigning for the release of its citizen. The Australian parliament recently passed a resolution urging the US and the UK to stop prosecuting Assange.