Mexico offers Assange political asylum

January 5, 2021

Addressing a press conference on Monday, the President said he will ask the Foreign Affairs Ministry to contact British officials over the asylum offer and request that Assange be pardoned…reports Asian Lite News

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has offered political asylum to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, after a UK court blocked the latter’s extradition to the US, citing concerns over his “mental health and “risk of suicide”.

Addressing a press conference on Monday, the President said he will ask the Foreign Affairs Ministry to contact British officials over the asylum offer and request that Assange be pardoned, reports Xinhua news agency.

“It is a triumph of justice. I commend England’s action because Assange is a journalist and deserves a chance,” Lopez Obrador told reporters, referring to the ruling.

“We will give him protection, we will take that step,” the President added.

The 49-year-old, who spent almost seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, faces an 18-count indictment from US authorities accusing him of recruiting hackers to steal military secrets.

Following Monday’s order, Assange was taken back to the Belmarsh Prison, where he is being held and a full application for his bail will be made on Wednesday.

In the ruling, District Judge Vanessa Baraitser said that while US prosecutors met the tests for Assange to be extradited for trial, the US was incapable of preventing him from attempting to take his own life.

She outlined evidence of his self harm and suicidal thoughts and said: “The overall impression is of a depressed and sometimes despairing man fearful for his future,” the BBC reported

The US authorities have 14 days to lodge an appeal and are expected to do so.

Assange faces an 18-count indictment from the US government, accusing him of conspiring to hack into US military databases to acquire sensitive secret information relating to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, which was then published on the Wikileaks website.

According to him, the information exposed abuses by the US military.

Assange was jailed for 50 weeks in May 2019 for breaching his bail conditions after going into hiding in the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

He sought refuge in the embassy for seven years from 2012 until he was arrested in April 2019.

Also read:UK court denies Assange’s extradition to US

Previous Story

‘Saudi to reopen land, air, sea borders with Qatar’

Next Story

EU Presidency: Portuguese PM sets out goals

Latest from -Top News

Sisi, MBZ cement ties

UAE and Egypt bolster ties through high-level talks in Abu Dhabi and a landmark cardiac care initiative delivering lifesaving treatment to rural

70,000 Gaza kids starve

WFP warned that any further escalation of conflict could paralyse relief operations altogether, deepening the plight of civilians—especially children, the elderly, and

Prayers on the Mount

The Day of Arafat, considered the pinnacle of the Hajj pilgrimage, witnessed a congregation of believers from around the world As the

EID MUBARAK!

UAE marks Eid Al Adha with housing support, children’s gifts, pardons, and cultural celebrations, reflecting a national spirit of compassion, unity, and