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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
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Margaret Sullivan

The US justice department must drop spy charges against Julian Assange

Julian Assange United States EPA Donald Trump Wikileaks Barack Obama Jameel Jaffer Chelsea Manning Joe Biden Merrick Garland
Cinema for Peace - 74th Berlin Film Festival<br>epa11166734 Protester holds a banner with the portrait of Julian Assange prior to the Cinema for Peace event 'A special evening with Hillary Clinton - The best is yet to come' at the Theater des Westens theatre during the 74th Berlin International Film Festival 'Berlinale' in Berlin, Germany, 19 February 2024. EPA/HANNIBAL HANSCHKE
‘Imagine what a future Trump administration, armed with an Assange conviction, could do to the traditional press.’ Photograph: Hannibal Hanschke/EPA

Does Merrick Garland, the Biden-appointed attorney general, really want his legacy to include a heavy blow to long-established press rights in the United States?

If not, Garland must drop the 17 charges under the Espionage Act against Julian Assange. This should have happened years ago but now is a key moment. The high court in London is considering this week whether to extradite Assange to the US to face those charges.

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