The Australian journalist, who was previously granted asylum for seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy in that capital, is now before two judges who will decide after two days of public hearing whether the case deserves reconsideration or should be closed.
If the court finally approves the extradition, Assange faces a prison sentence of 175 years as he faces 18 criminal charges related to the distribution of classified information and diplomatic cables in 2010 and 2011 through WikiLeaks, which was founded in 2006.
Much of the research is related to the actions of U.S. forces in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Chelsea Manning, an Army intelligence analyst and one of the information providers, received 35 years in prison, a sentence later commuted.
The White House's allegations are based on the Espionage Act, which was passed more than 100 years ago to convict traitors and spies in World War I, although it has never before been used against a journalist.
In Washington they are also trying to deny Assange's status as a journalist, claiming that he published data without context and is a hacker; However, he received numerous international awards.
In July 2010 alone, WikiLeaks released more than 90,000 classified documents – a fact considered the largest leak since the Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam War – ranging from categories ranging from the search for Osama Bin Laden to the deaths of Afghan civilians.
However, human rights organizations, civil rights organizations and other communications-related organizations support Assange.
In a joint statement on February 14, the International Federation of Journalists and the European Federation of Journalists said the ongoing persecution of Julian Assange “endangers media freedom around the world.”
This Tuesday, the lawyers presented the reasons why their client did not travel to the United States, including harassment for political crimes and the real risk of a blatant violation of his procedural rights.
On the first day, which was also marked by a heavy concentration in favor of the 52-year-old Australian, lawyers argued that there was no possibility of a fair trial in the Northern Territory and that extradition would make the criminalization of investigative journalism viable.
In addition, the experts questioned the legality of the transfer based on a bilateral treaty signed between London and Washington and announced that if the trial was resumed in British courts, they would present a CIA plan to assassinate Assange.
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