Julian Assange heads to freedom. This is how the deal was done

Australian pressure, British legal process and a US realisation it needed a deal led to Wikileaks founder's release.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUK General ElectionUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC VerifySportBusinessFuture of BusinessTechnology of BusinessWork CultureInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersHow the deal to free Julian Assange was agreed2 days agoBy James Landale & Tiffanie Turnbull, BBC NewsShareWatch moment Julian Assange leaves US court in Saipan a free manIn the end, it was a mixture of diplomacy, politics and law that allowed Julian Assange to take off in a private jet from London's Stansted airport on Monday, bound ultimately for Australia and freedom.

The deal that led to his liberty - after seven years of self-imposed confinement and then five years of enforced detention - was months in the making but uncertain to the last.

In a statement, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said the possibility of a plea deal "first came to our attention in March". Since then, it had been advising the United States "on the mechanics" of how to get Assange released and to appear before a US federal judge “in accordance with his wishes and those of the US government”.

But the origins of the deal – after so many years of deadlock – probably began with the election of a new Australian government in May 2022 that brought to power an administration determined to bring home one of its citizens detained overseas.

Anthony Albanese, the new Labor prime minister, said he did not support everything Assange had done but "enough was enough" and it was time for him to be released. He made the case a priority, largely behind closed doors. "Not all foreign affairs is best done with the loud hailer,” he said at the time.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c511y42z1p7o

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