The Australian House of Representatives has increased pressure on the United States and Britain to end the prosecution of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. In a motion passed on Wednesday, lawmakers called for the Australian citizen to be allowed to return to his home country. The move comes just ahead of Assange's appeal against extradition to the United States on espionage charges, which is set to take place in Britain's High Court of Justice.
The motion, brought forward by independent lawmaker Andrew Wilkie, received support from 86 lawmakers including Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. It called for the United States and Britain to bring the matter to a close so that Assange can reunite with his family in Australia. However, 42 lawmakers, mainly from the opposition party, opposed the motion and proposed amendments that were ultimately unsuccessful.
