The plea deal abruptly ends a criminal case marked by international conspiracies and the U.S. government’s years-long pursuit of the publisher whose popular secrets-sharing website made him a cause celebre among many press freedom advocates who said he acted like a journalist to denounce the public.
In contrast, US prosecutors have repeatedly confirmed that his actions violated the law and endangered the country’s national security.
A plane believed to be carrying WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has arrived in Bangkok and will plead guilty to a felony charge as part of a deal with the US Justice Department that will allow him to go free and resolve a saga long-term legal project that spans several continents and centers on the publication of a set of secret documents.
Stephen Parkinson, Attorney General of England, said: “After 13 and a half years and two extradition requests following his first arrest, Julian Assange has left the UK, following a bail hearing on Thursday last, which was held behind closed doors at his request. »
criminal record
Assange has left a British prison and will appear later this week in US federal court in the Northern Mariana Islands, a US Commonwealth state in the western Pacific Ocean.
He is expected to plead guilty to a charge of conspiracy to illegally obtain and disseminate classified national defense information, the Justice Department said in a letter submitted to the court.
Assange has been hailed by many around the world as a hero who shined a light on military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Among the files released by WikiLeaks was video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack by U.S. forces in Baghdad, killing 11 people, including two Reuters journalists.
