Looks like Assange may go from the loving arms of the Ecuadorian Embassy to London's finest cell when he is evicted, which is now imminent.
UK police outside Ecuador embassy amid WikiLeaks tweets
Also at The Hill.
Ecuador denies WikiLeaks claim it plans to release Julian Assange
The Ecuadorian government on Friday rejected claims by WikiLeaks that founder Julian Assange would be ousted from his sanctuary at the country's embassy in London "within hours to days."
Ecuador's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement released Friday that the allegation was "an attempt to stain the dignity of the country," according to an NBC News translation. Ecuador "has made significant expenditures to pay for his stay" and has "endured its rudeness," the ministry continued.
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Breaking: Met police confirm that Julian Assange has been arrested at the Ecuadorian embassy.
Mr Assange took refuge in the embassy seven years ago to avoid extradition to Sweden over a sexual assault case that has since been dropped.
The Met Police said he was arrested for failing to surrender to the court.
Ecuador's president Lenin Moreno said it withdrew Mr Assange's asylum after his repeated violations to international conventions.
But WikiLeaks tweeted that Ecuador had acted illegally in terminating Mr Assange's political asylum "in violation of international law".
[...] Scotland Yard said it was invited into the embassy by the ambassador, following the Ecuadorian government's withdrawal of asylum.
After his arrest for failing to surrender to the court, police said he had been further arrested on behalf of US authorities under an extradition warrant.
He doesn't look happy, to say the least.
Update: As this is a breaking story, more information is coming out regularly - one source that updates their reports frequently is Zero Hedge - thanks boru!
Previously: New Analysis of Swedish Police Report Confirms Julian Assange's Version in Sweden's Case
Ecuador Reportedly Almost Ready to Hand Julian Assange Over to UK Authorities
UK Said Assange Would Not be Extradited If He Leaves Embassy Refuge
Inadvertent Court Filing Suggests that the U.S. DoJ is Preparing to Indict Julian Assange
U.S. Ramping Up Probe Against Julian Assange, WikiLeaks Says
Ecuador Denies That Julian Assange Will be Evicted From Embassy in London
Submitted via IRC for Runaway1956
Judge blasts Assange for jumping bail, sentences him to almost one year
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been sentenced to 50 weeks in prison for fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy in London while on bail in 2012. At the time, he was facing possible extradition to Sweden on sexual assault charges.
Assange remained in the embassy until last month, when he was evicted by his Ecuadorian hosts and re-arrested by British authorities.
Wednesday's sentencing is unlikely to be the end of Assange's legal problems. Shortly after he was re-arrested last month, US authorities unsealed an indictment charging him with conspiring with Chelsea Manning to crack a hashed password belonging to a Pentagon computer in 2010. At the time, Manning was an Army private leaking confidential military documents to WikiLeaks. Assange was unable to learn the password, but the US argues that his attempt is sufficient to charge him with conspiracy.
In a letter to the court, Assange argued that he had fled to the embassy out of fear that he'd be extradited to the United States and wind up being held indefinitely at the US prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Also at BBC, The Guardian, CNET, and The Register.
Previously: Inadvertent Court Filing Suggests that the U.S. DoJ is Preparing to Indict Julian Assange
U.S. Ramping Up Probe Against Julian Assange, WikiLeaks Says
Ecuador Denies That Julian Assange Will be Evicted From Embassy in London
Wikileaks Co-Founder Julian Assange Arrested at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London
Julian Assange Associate Arrested In Ecuador
Original Submission #1 Original Submission #2 Original Submission #3
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @11:55AM (45 children)
Were the tweets by Wikileaks just another plea for attention by Julian Assange? He seems to be very happy playing the role of "victim" even though he is in control of his own circumstances.
Before the "troll" moderation starts, just remember he skipped bail in the UK and hid in the Ecuadorian Embassy willingly. And before the "they would extradite him to the US" replies show up, keep in mind that Trump is a big fan of Wikileaks and could very possibly pardon Assange if he is extradited to the US while Trump is still in office. The US may not even pursue Assange under the direction of the current US administration.
Assange could have ended this on his own, but he continues to hide and play the victim. He needs to shit or get off the pot because the situation can and will get worse if the US administration changes after the 2020 elections.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @12:20PM (2 children)
Obviously, Trump is unable to control his own situation either and that for quite a long time. With the current US regime operating in strongly decoherent mode, Assange's very life may well depend on which particular deep state faction hands he will fall into when extradicted. My opinion is, it is actually Assange's Russophobia which prevented him to keep his freedom, Snowden was not that stupid.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @01:10PM
Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @05:30PM
Though nothing is preventing Trump from preempting the situation right now, by issuing a full pardon for all crimes Assange may have committed against the US. The deep state and their MSM mouthpieces will wail and gnash their teeth, but it would be over.
However, from what I heard, Trump doesn't really look so favorably upon Assange.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by ledow on Sunday April 07 2019, @12:24PM (31 children)
You watch - if Assange hasn't been in the news for a few weeks, he'll say/do/accuse/prompt something like this.
It's some sort of narcissistic personality disorder, he can't help it, he has to be in the newspaper somewhere, whether or not what he's claiming is unfounded or not.
It's his only escape route, to hope enough publicity will save him from a life of exile, or arrest. Because for damn sure he stays in the embassy until he's arrested by the UK police, whether or not the whole US/Sweden thing has any base to it whatsoever.
He knows if he doesn't, he'll be forgotten.
If you think about it, all Wikileaks, Snowden, Assange and Manning have proven is "If you know something, STFU up about it or live your entire life in prison or exile". The exact opposite of their supposed message. Nobody is up in arms and protesting about anything Wikileaks has ever published. All three of them were on the run from the law and captured in some way, and imprisoned in some way, despite all their publicity. And virtually nothing's happened *about* the things they reported, while at the same time they've shown themselves to be unreliable holders of that information, and implicated their own kind into official investigations by revealing such information.
Assange is a twat. He'll either die in the embassy, or come out, spend a long time in jail (the judges won't forget that he evaded justice after breaking bail, and did so for many *years* in public view - they can't let that stand as an example, whether or not the actual crime he was wanted for happened) and then fade into obscurity after he gets out.
He knows that. The only option he sees is to make as huge a fuss as possible and evade the law still. But I guarantee you that his actions have affected *every* asylum decision in *every* embassy in the world, because nobody's going to want a repeat of that.
It's arguable that almost everything he did from the second he became famous actually *harmed* people wishing to whistleblow, fight against government oppression, etc. - all the things he claims to stand for.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @12:36PM (6 children)
The problem with Assange and Snowden is they went public rather than submitting things to multiple news organizations and keeping their name & face out of the news. Manning got caught, but I don't believe s/he wanted to be publicly known (unlike Assange and Snowden).
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @01:12PM (2 children)
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Acabatag on Monday April 08 2019, @03:53AM (1 child)
To play partisan politics? Seriously? Assange went after Hillary and the DNC to point out that the Democrats are no better than the Republicans.
That isn't partisan politics, it's exposing the world to reality.
(Score: 2) by dry on Monday April 08 2019, @06:13AM
He could have exposed shit from both parties if he wanted to show them as the same.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Runaway1956 on Sunday April 07 2019, @01:33PM (2 children)
Manning drew attention to himself, immediately after Wikileaks made their initial announcements. He pointed out to his own supervisor that the data could only come from a small handful of computers, and that the data was a precise match to data available only from a server to which he had access. From there, things only became more "transparent", shall we say. Manning exposed himself just as surely as either Snowden or Assange, he merely chose a different manner in which to do so.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @03:28PM (1 child)
I didn't k ow this about the Manning situation. Then we should group Manning in with Assange and Snowden. They all should have kept their heads down and their public mouths shut.
(Score: 2) by Pav on Sunday April 07 2019, @11:06PM
Valerie Plame (an experienced undercover agent) put herself under every spotlight she could find after some of the most powerful people in the world "accidentally" arranged for her to be in mortal danger. There are a number of lines of evidence pointing to Seth Rich being the DNC leaker, and Bill Binney and others did a stellar job showing the "hack" narrative was BS. There are some powerful people who well earned the suspicion they're under for his murder. Who in their right mind would hide from the public gaze as a whistleblower against the deep state?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @01:00PM (1 child)
(Score: 2) by loonycyborg on Sunday April 07 2019, @01:15PM
Dying would be very good way for him getting into news again.. Anyone who doesn't want that wouldn't want to kill him, even by "accident". Because nobody will believe even if it really was accident.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @01:13PM
It sounds like the WikiLeaks twitter account said something, not Assange. It sounds like he doesn't even handle documents for the organization anymore due to being closely monitored. Maybe Ecuador took a step back since there was suddenly a lot of attention being paid to the situation.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Sunday April 07 2019, @01:28PM (3 children)
We agree on one thing, most definitely:
Assange left himself no way out. There is no escape route. His *best* chance of escape, that of slipping out unnoticed by some method, he has destroyed, and destroyed again, time and again. I mean, the chance of slipping out were never "good", but just about the time those chances are "best", he blows it again. It's like, he doesn't want to escape - which gives credence to the rest of your post.
Anyone who goes to an embassy seeking asylum in the future will surely raise questions. "Is this guy going to use us, like Assange used Ecuador?"
(Score: 4, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @03:52PM (2 children)
I hear they have room over at the Saudi Embassy.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday April 07 2019, @04:26PM (1 child)
Hilarious.
Which one, though?
(Score: 4, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @04:29PM
The one next to the butcher shop.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Pav on Sunday April 07 2019, @04:24PM (10 children)
It always confuses me why people get so snarky about Assange. It's as if they've got a personal stake in the "big brothering" of themselves, their own electoral disenfranchisement (at least if they're on the Democrat side).
(Score: 4, Interesting) by ledow on Sunday April 07 2019, @08:30PM (9 children)
Personally?
He threw whistleblowers under the train, then fled from charges, got "friends" to pay his bail and promptly skipped bail, and now evades the law at my expense (as a UK taxpayer).
I don't blame the judiciary for that... we can't afford to let people just thumb their nose at the law because they cost a lot to chase, but we literally had NO INTEREST in him beyond a European Arrest Warrant that we were obliged to act upon (and sent back TWICE because it wasn't correct). And now he's living at... whose expense? As an outlaw. In the UK. Requiring police action and judicial costs. For someone who bails out on his friends, and has nothing else redeeming about him.
I don't care about the whole US/Sweden thing as literally NOTHING happened that way. Nothing. But a UK court said "Okay, we trust you, we'll hold onto this money in exchange for you staying around" and he *ran*. But couldn't even do that properly. And then is literally on the news almost every week, crowing about how he's hard done by, isn't being treated well (when it's entirely self-inflicted AND at other's expense), etc.
Wake up, get out, do your time for skipping bail, deal with the charges (if ANY) against you. Then you can earn some basic respect for facing up to your accusers. Until then, he's just a criminal on the run.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @09:50PM
You over there in Airstrip One could just drop the whole futile show about skipping bail and whatever and deport him to Australia as an undesirable foreigner if he is discovered outside the embassy. Or ignore his being shipped in a diplomatic car to the airport and then on a flight to Ecuador.
But you're not. Because your former colony is pulling your puppet strings to keep him ready for extraditing, and at least to hold him unable to act.
(Score: 2) by Pav on Sunday April 07 2019, @10:43PM (3 children)
So the UK is obliged to keep the Equadorian embassy under constant watch? For skipping bail for charges that have been dropped? I know conservatives shiver with excitement to serve power, but that's just embarrassing.
(Score: 3, Informative) by ledow on Sunday April 07 2019, @11:18PM (2 children)
The skipping bail charges HAVE NOT been dropped.
What charges he was facing *TO* skip bail were dropped. But he skipped court bail. That's basically contempt of court, whether or not he was innocent of the original charges or they were dropped. He promised the court he'd be a good boy and not run off. He didn't. So the UK court still have an arrest warrant out for him.
It's like saying that charges for punching a policeman in the face should be dropped, because you did it while he was trying to arrest you for littering, and you didn't actually litter. Nobody cares. You still go to court for that OTHER, completely unrelated charge, because you're an idiot.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Pav on Monday April 08 2019, @12:14AM (1 child)
So... Assange says the charges were BS and manufactured to get him into custody and potential extradition AS HAS SUBSEQUENTLY PROVED TO BE THE CASE (actually, it was also known at the time... One of Australias premier investigative teams [abc.net.au] went to Sweden, and discovered exactly how shady and irregular these charges were. It has also been leaked that the US is preparing a case for his potential extradition in a secret court, and literally hundreds of people solely tasked with taking Wikileaks down.
So, in your view, the rare publishers and leakers brave enough to expose state criminality should lay their necks into the nooses prepared for them? I'm sure most people would rather be aware of the survelance state, be aware of the misappropriation of their tax dollars to fund muslim extremists, be aware of their disenfranchisement etc... But you... begrudge the 24hr survelance Assange is put under so that Downing St can be seen to have a sufficiently brown nose?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 08 2019, @10:09PM
Just stick that in there somewhere, would you. Thanks.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Pav on Sunday April 07 2019, @11:17PM (1 child)
BTW, he certainly never threw whistleblowers under the train... quite the contrary actually. Unfortunately the Guardian, Luke Hardy in particular, has been a source of a lot of BS on this front. He was also a big international pusher of Russiagate. The interview he did with Aaron Mate should have forever destroyed his credibility... unlikely though, because he's pushing "approved" narratives.
(Score: 2) by Pav on Monday April 08 2019, @12:36AM
Luke HARDING rather...
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @11:36PM
He said when he first ran that the UK just had to say "You will not be deported to the USA" and he would walk out the embassy. They have consistently weaseled out of saying that, and as a result he believes that as soon as he leaves the embassy, he's on a plane to Guantanamo. Not an unreasonable belief, considering that the UK has spent millions of pounds waiting to grab him.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 08 2019, @12:59PM
I understand the point that he skipped bail, which is something judiciary takes a special interest in because it makes them look... usurptive... BUT
No he didn't. That is a white lie. I will give you a pass for being ignorant but then you should question the person or place where YOU heard it.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @05:42PM (1 child)
They give The People an opportunity to fundamentally alter their corrupt governments. Opportunities are important, but if The People fail to use them, that is on them. This does not mean that whistleblowers should no longer blow the whistle.
(Score: 2) by urza9814 on Monday April 08 2019, @05:41PM
Morally and theoretically, sure. But practically, if potential whistleblowers consistently see The People fail to support other whistleblowers, then why take the risk? Keep in mind also that there's more than one way to fight back, so if that particular strategy consistently fails then it's better to look for alternatives rather than burning yourself for no reason. The number of people with access to that particular information AND the willingness to do something about it is going to be rather small, so it's not a position you should destroy without some strategic consideration. Maybe you can try to leak information slower so that you don't get caught and can get more out in the end. Maybe you can try to subtly sabotage these projects in ways that won't get noticed immediately. Maybe you can build some internal resistance. Getting your name in the papers for a few weeks might feel good, but if it doesn't change anything then what's the point?
(Score: 3, Informative) by shortscreen on Sunday April 07 2019, @07:04PM (2 children)
Assange isn't saying/doing anything. He doesn't even have internet access right now.
If you want to help the corrupt elites in their vengeful smear campaign against Assange, you'll have to come up with a new talking point, because the old "Assange just wants to be in the spotlight" doesn't even hold water at this point.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @09:36PM (1 child)
He has a cell phone and an ego. That's all he needs to keep his name in the press.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @10:42PM
I've got a pretty big ego and one of the latest phones, damn media ignores me like the plague!
(Score: 2) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Thursday April 11 2019, @02:13PM
Apparently not.
This sig for rent.
(Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Sunday April 07 2019, @12:42PM (1 child)
I wouldn't say I'm a big fan of Wikileaks. For one thing, their cyber is not secure AT ALL. They have a "page" about me. Which my people monitor very carefully. November 22, 2018 -- 55th. anniversary of J.F.K. assination -- my "page" was hacked very badly. Very badly. Somebody took my official picture off the "page." And put up a picture of a man's Whatever. Not mine. And when folks would ask Siri, "oh, how tall is President Trump?" or "is President Trump married?" they would see some other guy's junk. F.B.I. is looking very carefully into that one and they think the man in the picture may be the hacker. Need to do more investigating on that one and, hopefully it's going to go MUCH QUICKER now that Robert Mueller has wrapped up his wonderful work and everything's back to normal. Thank you, Robert!!!!
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @03:54PM
Remarkable likeness.
(Score: 1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @01:16PM (1 child)
If Trump did pardon him the Democrats would waste no time in casting it as evidence of "colluussssion" and try to Impeach Trump. This is what democrats have been doing for 2 years now,also to prevent Trump from doing anything a President does including obstructing his constitutional duties such as appointing and firing cabinet members .
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @10:46PM
He would be impeached right now if the GOP wasn't compromised and hypocritical.
You should re-read your post, sounds more like the Republicans for the last 16 years of Democrat presidents. At least with Trump the pols have a legitimate reason to be pursuing impeachment.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Sunday April 07 2019, @04:28PM (4 children)
Ok, keeping that paltry bit in mind, we still have the problem that he could be extradited to the US. The US "may not", but it's a lot of trouble if they do.
Trump hasn't pardoned Assange. That would be the sure-fire way to demonstrate that the US isn't going to extradite and prosecute Assange.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @06:15PM (3 children)
Trump doesn't do anything until it is personally advantageous. Assange leaving the embassy and getting picked up by London's finest could start that clock running. But if Trump tells Barr to "let it go" then Assange will never even face extradition.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday April 07 2019, @06:31PM (2 children)
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @09:41PM (1 child)
Like I said, he does nothing until he can benefit from it. If Assange doesn't leave the embassy it does no good for Trump to do anything. And if Assange happens to fall victim to foul play then Trump won't need to do anything either.
The one thing we know for a fact is that Assange has been hiding out in the embassy like a scared little girl for years.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 07 2019, @10:08PM
Oh, big man on the Internet speaking. I'd like to hear your sniveling if you ever get caught in the machinations of governments. Assange is a selfish bigmouth, but he's paid a high price running an organization to protect the people who expose what states and companies would rather keep secret.
There is apparently a secret indictment being formed in the US against Assange. Once that is ready, that will guarantee a quick extradition from the British perspective, if they get a hold of him.
He is likely safe though in the Ecuadorian embassy, at least as long as the current Ecuadorian government doesn't get regime changed in a US-Brazilian cooperation.
Trump could instruct the attorney general to not make a move, which would keep Assange safe unless the political leadership changes in the US. A pardon would moot the entire show, but Trump has spoken critically about Assange before. I don't think he will protect Assange from extradition.
(Score: 2) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Monday April 08 2019, @05:33PM
Or were the tweets by Wikileaks legitimate because high level sources did in fact leak that he was going to be evicted for purposes of system manipulation and neither you nor I can see all the players involved or why such a false flag should be planted at this time. (Other than discrediting Wikileaks and Assange would seem a worthy goal of all the governments concerned).
As for a thought exercise, let's say that you, AC are orbiting the earth in the International Space Station and the current mission crew takes all the capsules away from you, you have no pressure suit available, and no controls for stationkeeping thrusters. You are free to go where you will, are you not? All you have to do is open the hatch and you can go wherever you like!
And no, it is pretty well known now [nytimes.com] that the current administration is still out for Assange's blood. Were this not true, all the State, Justice, Defense, and National Security Council need do is put out a joint public statement that there are no warrants for Julian Assange currently under seal and no attempts to extradite for any publicly known actions or actions known to the government of his prior to today are planned. Or Donald Trump could simply follow Ford's example and pre-emptively pardon Assange. Instead, Assange unsurprisingly stays in place in apparently the one place in the world where he can remain relatively free. In an astronaut-y sort of way. Not to mention that there is absolutely no reason the British government cannot look the other way on the bail skip charge. Queen Elizabeth could issue a Royal Prerogative of Mercy for Assange and that would be the end of the bail skip charge, and she could likely make stick that no extradition would occur in any circumstance.
This sig for rent.