This was unexpected. The British district court judge Vanessa Baraitser rejected the U.S. extradition request against Julian Assange:
Kevin Gosztola – 11:07 UTC · Jan 4, 2021
BREAKING: Judge rules against US extradition of Julian Assange, contending extradition would be oppressive by reason of Assange’s mental health
The British judge said that the U.S. prison system is too brutal to be trusted with the health of Assange.
Kevin Gosztola @kgosztola – 10:57 UTC · Jan 4, 2021
Baraitser says Assange is at high risk of suicide and that there is a "real risk" he will be detained subject to special administrative measures (SAMs) in US prison, especially because intelligence community is hostile to him
Baraitser: Extradition would be oppressive by reason of Assange’s mental health
The United States government's mass incarceration system just lost them their case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange
Holy shit, the judge ends saying she is satisfied that procedures described by US would not prevent Assange from finding a way to commit suicide in US supermax prison
The judge and defense are discussing an application for bail. US government is going to immediately appeal.
The full ruling is available here.
Caitlin Johnstone @caitoz – 11:14 UTC · Jan 4, 2021
UPDATE: Judge ordered no extradition for Assange, and orders him released from Belmarsh Prison, both due to suicide risk concerns. The US has confirmed that it will appeal extradition ruling. He's still jailed, court is in recess and then they'll discuss possible bail or release.
It's likely they'll keep him jailed until after the US appeals the ruling, as Medhurst explains. We're definitely not out of the woods yet. But getting out of Belmarsh is excellent.
This is not a win for freedom of speech or a free press. The judge has accepted the U.S. prosecution arguments against Assange. The extradition rejection is solely on humanitarian grounds.
Anyway, the British government seems to have grown a spine? We can then hope that the U.S.government's appeal will fail.