LONDON — A British court ruled Tuesday that Julian Assange can’t be extradited to the United States on espionage charges unless U.S. authorities guarantee he won’t get the death penalty, a partial victory for the WikiLeaks founder in his legal battle over the site’s publication of classified U.S. documents.
Two High Court judges said they would grant Assange a new appeal unless U.S. authorities give further assurances within three weeks about what will happen to him. The judges said a hearing will be held May 20 if the U.S. makes those submissions. Assange will remain inside London’s high-security Belmarsh Prison, where he spent the past five years.
His supporters say he is a journalist protected by the First Amendment who exposed U.S. military wrongdoing in Iraq and Afghanistan that was in the public interest.
