Who is Julian Assange and why is he facing extradition?

Julian Assange will find out on 20 May whether he will be extradited to the US. The UK courts had agreed to send him to be tried for disclosing military secrets. But he asked the High Court for permission to appeal against that decision. Mr Assange gained a reputation for computer programming as a teenager.

WikiLeaks published documents that suggested the US military had killed hundreds of civilians in unreported incidents during the war in Afghanistan. US authorities said publishing the information put named individuals in Afghanistan and Iraq at risk of serious harm, torture or even death. Mr Assange insisted that the files exposed serious abuses by US armed forces, and that the case against him was politically motivated. The 2019 US extradition request was granted after a series of court hearings.

Mr Assange has spent several years fighting to overturn the decision. He was sent to London’s high security Belmarsh prison, for breaching bail conditions in a separate case. He has been kept there while the US extradition case proceeds, because of his history of absconding. Swedish authorities issued an arrest warrant for Mr Assange in 2010.

They accused him of raping one woman and molesting another while in the country. The court said it would delay its ruling until 20 May. It asked the US authorities to provide assurances about Mr Assange’s treatment. Sweden asked the UK to extradite Mr Assange, who was arrested and remanded on bail.

Two years of legal battles followed, but in 2012, the UK Supreme Court ruled that he should be extradited to Sweden for questioning. He went on the run and sought political asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy. In November 2019, the Swedish authorities dropped their case against Mr Assange. The decision was made because too much time had passed since the alleged offences.

Mr Assange and his partner, Stella Moris, began their relationship in 2015. They have two children together, fathered while he was living in the Ecuadorian embassy.