Julian Assange is the Australian born founder and editor-in-chief of Wikileaks, which publishes leaked secret information, and classified government documents from anonymous news sources and whistleblowers [1].

Assange is currently being sought by American authorities for allegations of espionage and treason for publishing leaked information that was passed to WikiLeaks by Bradley Manning [2]. The material included videos of the July 12, 2007 Baghdad airstrike (shown in the video) and the 2009 Granai airstrike in Afghanistan; 250,000 diplomatic cables; and 500,000 army reports.

Bradley Manning, a U.S. Army soldier, was charged with a number of offenses, including communicating national defense information to an unauthorized source and aiding the enemy- a capitol offense. He was arraigned in Feburary 2012 at Fort Meade, Maryland. The trial is expected to begin in June 2013.

Since Manning’s incarceration Assange has kept on the move, traveling through Europe with nothing more than a backpack and a laptop. He kept out of the public eye until  making an appearance in the UK to leak more documents and appear in several interviews.   The documents implied that the U.S. and its allies are suffering defeat after defeat in Afghanistan, and that the Western military killed hundreds of civilians and the Taliban have gained access to new missiles types. Among other things, the document contained information that the West suspects the government of Pakistan and Iran in providing secret assistance to the Taliban.

Assange decided to locate some of the servers of WikiLeaks in Sweden. The country is supposedly neutral and is not a member of NATO. Sweden also has the Pirate Party whose program provides for eligibility and placement of information in virtually any possible way. However, the Scandinavians had unpleasant surprise for Assange.

On August 20, two Swedish women contacted police claiming that the founder of WikiLeaks has allegedly raped them. Assange denied all charges. He wrote in a Swedish newspaper that the Americans were taking revenge on him for the appearance of the “Afghan dossier.” Swedish security officials found the evidence of his guilt to be doubtful, and the next day the case was closed. [3]

On September first the information was released that the Swedish Prosecution Authorities decided to reopen the investigation. The reason for this 180 degree turn in the attitude of the Scandinavian Themis remains a mystery. The next story was even more confusing. Despite all the seriousness of the charges, the humane Swedish court has never ruled that the Australian should be detained. At the end of September Assange left Stockholm.

The prosecution only motivated the Australian. On October 23, the new “Iraqi dossier” emerged on the now world-famous site featuring nearly 400,000 documents produced, as in previous cases, as a result of leaks. Again, the U.S. and its allies have been exhibited in the most unfavorable light.

The disclosed documents indicated that, as a result of the war in Iraq in 2004-2009. 109,000 people were killed, most of them civilians. The facts of unmotivated massacre of Iraqi civilian population by U.S. and other military as well as agonizing torture were made public. The leadership of the intelligence of “anti-Saddam coalition” prevented further progress in investigating the crimes committed by the U.S. and its allies. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton rushed to call the released information untested.

In turn, Prime Minister of Denmark Lars Rasmussen Løkke was less categorical, and ordered to check the material on the Danish military involvement in the crimes in Iraq. Meanwhile Assange got a taste of the game, and threatened to publish compromising information on other countries, including Russia, by end of the year. [4]

November 18, unpleasant news came from Sweden. A Stockholm court satisfied the claim of the local prosecutor’s office and issued arrest warrants for the Australian, declaring it an international arrest warrant. The report stated the prosecutor’s office asked to arrest Assange on suspicion of rape, violation of sexual integrity and unlawful coercion. The case features three episodes.

The alleged criminal said that he never shied away from interrogation. Assange said that until recently he was ready to personally come to Stockholm, talk with the investigators on the phone and talk to them through a video chat or e-mail. He claimed that the fact that he was on the wanted list was the machinations of the CIA.

After pressure from the US and Sweden the British Government issued a warrant for Assanged to be extradited to Sweden. Assange promptly sought refuge in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London where he was granted asylum. This twist of events infuriated the British Government to the point where threats of actually storming the embassy where discussed.[5]

With no way out of the country Assange has been hiding out in the Ecuadorian embassy since June 19, 2012. Recently in a statement released to the media Assange claims he is running for a senate seat in his home country of Australia. Supporters say this may be the only way to avoid being extradited to the US or Sweden. [6]

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