UK Home Secretary Priti Patel has approved the extradition of Julian Assange to the United States on Friday, Spectator Index reported.
The case passed to the home secretary last month after the supreme court ruled that there were no legal questions over assurances given by US authorities over how he is likely to be treated.
While Patel has given a green light, an expected cross-appeal by Assange’s legal team would restart the clock on a renewed legal battle in the courts.
The United States government unsealed an indictment against Assange related to the leaks provided by Chelsea Manning.
On 23 May 2019, the United States government further charged Assange with violating the Espionage Act of 1917.
Editors from newspapers, including The Washington Post and The New York Times, as well as press freedom organisations, criticised the government's decision to charge Assange under the Espionage Act, characterising it as an attack on the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guarantees freedom of the press.
