Rob Harris writes 26th November 2019
Kevin Rudd says Julian Assange would pay an “unacceptable” and “disproportionate” price if he is extradited to the United States, arguing the WikiLeaks founder should not take the fall for Washington’s failures to secure its own classified documents.
In a significant intervention into Mr Assange’s extradition fight, the former Australian prime minister said US prosecutors had not made any specific allegations that anyone was seriously harmed as a consequence of the release of highly classified documents relating to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars in 2010.
A newly established cross-party group of federal MPs met in Canberra for the first time on Monday [25/11/2019], agreeing to pressure for the US’s extradition request to be dropped and for Mr Assange to be allowed to return to Australia.
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The group’s co-chairs, independent MP Andrew Wilkie and Nationals MP George Christensen, are seeking to lead a parliamentary delegation visit Mr Assange in Belmarsh prison in coming months.
The group was briefed by barrister Jen Robinson, a member of Mr Assange’s London legal team, as well as Greg Barns from the Australian Assange Campaign and human rights and due process advocate Aloysia Brooks.
Read full article in The Sydney Morning Herald