Request denied
November 2, 2011
Julian Assange, founder of the controversial whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks, may be extradited to Sweden to face allegations of sex crimes, a British court ruled Wednesday.
Swedish authorities want to question the 40-year-old on accusations by two female WikiLeaks volunteers that he broke Sweden's laws governing sexual consent during a week-long visit to Stockholm in August 2010.
One woman accuses Assange of sexually molesting her by ignoring her request for him to use a condom during sex. The second woman says he had sex with her while she was asleep, and that he was not wearing a condom - an allegation which falls into the least severe of three rape categories in Sweden.
Assange, who has spent much of the year under house arrest at a supporter's villa in England, denies any wrongdoing and says he would not receive a fair trial in Sweden. He claims the allegations are political, relating to WikiLeaks' publication of more than 250,000 US diplomatic cables and other secret documents.
Assange was arrested in Britain in December 2010 after Sweden issued a European arrest warrant. Wednesday's ruling upholds a previous court decision in February that found his extradition to Sweden to be legal.
The extradition could take place within two weeks if he does not lodge a further appeal against the decision.
Author: Andrew Bowen (AFP, dpa)
Editor: Michael Lawton