UK to Assange: Leave embassy, end sorry saga
London, Feb. 10: Julian Assange should leave the Ecuadoran embassy in London and bring to an end the “whole sorry saga”, British Prime Minister David Cameron told Parliament on Wednesday.
WikiLeaks founder Assange faces a rape allegation in Sweden but has been inside Quito’s mission for more than three and a half years in a bid to avoid extradition.
The 44- year- old Australian fears deportation from Sweden to the United States over WikiLeaks’ release of 500,000 secret military files.
A United Nations panel last week found the anti- secrecy campaigner had been arbitrarily detained by Britain and Sweden.
“I think this was a ridiculous decision,” Mr Cameron said in the Lower House of Commons. “You’ve got a man here with an outstanding allegation of rape against him. He barricaded himself into the Ecuadoran embassy and yet claims he was arbitrarily detained. The only person who detained himself — was himself.”
“And so what he should do is come out of that embassy and face the arrest warrant that is against him.”
He stressed that the allegation against Mr
‘ You’ve got a man here with an outstanding allegation of rape against him. He barricaded himself into the Ecuadoran embassy and yet claims he was arbitrarily detained,’ Mr Cameron said
Assange was in Sweden, “a country with a fair reputation for justice”.
“He should bring to the end this whole sorry saga.”
A Swedish prosecutor said Tuesday she still aims to question former computer hacker Assange inside the embassy, despite the UN report.
“It does not change my earlier assessments in the investigation,” Marianne Ny said in a statement.
She said she was “currently working on a renewed request to interview Julian Assange at Ecuador’s embassy in London”.