Sunday, supporters of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange held a vigil outside the Maryland residence of Attorney General Merrick Garland, urging him to drop the charges filed against the Australian journalist for publishing leaked classified U.S. military documents.
On Sunday at approximately 4:00 p.m., Garland was observed leaving his residence in a motorcade, passing by Assange supporters who had posted signs demanding an end to the prosecution. Some speakers at the vigil argued that the allegations against the journalist constituted an assault on press freedom.
Martha Allen, director of the Women’s Institute for Freedom of the Press, stated, “I believe the Julian Assange case is incredibly significant.” “We require media, democracy, and press freedom for the individual, not just for the five corporations that essentially control everything.” This case is crucial for independent media, press freedom, and all of us, not just the wealthy and powerful and those in charge of what’s happening in this country and abroad… This is an injustice that must cease. Set Julian Assange free.”
Assange is accused of publishing cables documenting war crimes committed by the United States government in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Guantánamo Bay detention facility more than a decade ago. The hundreds of thousands of documents released to Wikileaks by U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning also revealed instances of torture and rendition by the CIA.
Wikileaks also released its “Collateral Murder” video thirteen years ago, which depicted the United States military killing Iraqi civilians, including two Reuters journalists.
Assange is currently resisting extradition to the United States, where he would face 18 counts of receiving, possessing, and communicating classified information to the public in violation of the Espionage Act, as well as one count of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion. If extradited, he will be tried in Alexandria, Virginia, and could face up to 175 years in a maximum security American penitentiary.
At the vigil, Dominique Filanowski of OpEd News stated, “The global freedom depends on Julian Assange.” “Therefore, release Julian and ensure that he is not extradited. Let’s continue to combat until the very end. If the inevitable occurs and he is extradited, we will continue to combat it here.”
Since being removed from the Ecuadorian Embassy on April 11, 2019, for violating bail conditions, Assange has been detained at London’s maximum-security Belmarsh Prison. He sought asylum at the embassy in London to avoid extradition to Sweden over allegations that he assaulted two women, as Sweden would not guarantee his protection from U.S. extradition. The sexual assault allegations were eventually no longer investigated.
After Wikileaks published the cables in 2010, the Obama administration decided not to indict Assange because it would have been necessary to indict journalists from major news outlets who also published the materials.
Former President Donald Trump’s Justice Department indicted Assange under the Espionage Act, and the Biden administration has proceeded to pursue his prosecution.