Assange fears death penalty

Whistleblower 'could face execution or incarceration in Guantanamo Bay', says defence; defiant Assange vows to 'step up' release of cables

Whistleblower 'could face execution or incarceration in Guantanamo Bay', says defence; defiant Assange vows to 'step up' release of cables

Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, could be at "real risk" of the death penalty or detention in Guant namo Bay if he is extradited to Sweden on accusations of rape and sexual assault, his lawyers claim.

In a skeleton summary of their defence against attempts by the Swedish director of public prosecutions to extradite him, released yesterday, Assange's legal team argue that there is a similar likelihood that the US would subsequently seek his extradition "and/or illegal rendition", "where there will be a real risk of him being detained at Guant namo Bay or elsewhere".
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"Indeed, if Assange were rendered to the USA, without assurances that the death penalty would not be carried out, there is a real risk that he could be made subject to the death penalty. It is well known that prominent figures have implied, if not stated outright, that Assange should be executed."

The 35-page skeleton argument was released by Mark Stephens, Assange's lawyer, following a brief review hearing in court.

The WikiLeaks founder, who is on conditional bail while his extradition case is being considered, appeared for no more than 15 minutes in the dock (see pic), while supporters including Jemima Khan and Bianca Jagger looked on and waved support from the public gallery.

He later emerged to give a brief statement, saying, "Our work with WikiLeaks continues unabated. We are stepping up our publications for matters relating to Cablegate and other materials. These will shortly be available through our newspaper partners around the world newspapers and human rights organisations."

Two women had accused Assange of sexually assaulting them in separate incidents in August. One accusation, that Assange had sex with one of the women while she was asleep, would amount to rape under Swedish law if proven. Both women had previously had consenting sex with Assange.