More than 70 members of the German parliament from four political parties have called on US President Joe Biden and the British government to stop the impending deportation of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange from the UK to the US to face espionage charges.
"Journalists must not be persecuted or punished for their work anywhere in the world," the Bundestag deputies wrote in an open letter. "In the interest of press freedom as well as for humanitarian reasons in view of his poor state of health, Julian Assange must be released without delay."
Assange has been imprisoned in the UK since April 2019, when the government of Ecuador, which had hosted him in its London embassy for seven years, withdrew his political asylum.
A subsequent legal process and court trial ended on June 17, when British Home Secretary Priti Patel granted the US's extradition request. Assange's lawyers are currently appealing the minister's decision.
"A free press is one of the fundamental components of each and every democracy," the Bundestag members wrote. "We are very concerned about the deterrent effect that Assange's extradition and conviction could have on press freedom and investigative journalism around the world."
Members of all three German government coalition parties have signed the letter the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens, and the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP) as well as several representatives of the opposition socialist Left Party.The letter was not signed by members of the opposition conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) or the far-right populists from the Alternative for Germany (AfD).
In a statement to DW, one of the signatories, SPD human rights spokesman Frank Schwabe, said: "The situation is very clear. Julian Assange does not belong in a prison, and he certainly shouldn't be deported to a country where he is threatened with a draconian punishment. For me this is a question of the credibility of our important mutual understanding of human rights."
Christian Mihr, head of the German branch of Reporters Without Borders, saidhe hoped the German government would take the parliamentarians' message on board. "I hope the government recognizes it ... when elected representatives send such a strong signal, and that they take it seriously and position themselves clearly to Joe Biden," he told DW.
Should he be found guilty under the Espionage Act, Assange could face 175 years in prison in the United States. Through the Wikileaks platform, Assange was instrumental in leaking evidence of alleged war crimes committed by the US military in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Wikileaks also published confidential Democratic Party emails during the 2016 US election campaign.
Swedish prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for Assange on sexual assault allegations in 2010, though the investigation was eventually dropped when the statute of limitations expired whilehe remained in the Ecuadoran embassy.
In 2019, the UN special rapporteur on torture, Nils Melzer, visited Assange in Belmarsh prison in London and concluded that his treatment by the UK, US, and Ecuadoran governments amounted to psychological torture.
DW has reached out to the German Foreign Ministry for a reaction.So far, the German government has held the position that it has no reason to doubt the integrity of the British extradition process.
A petition opposing the "psychological torture" of Assange has been approved by the Bundestag's petitions committee, the Left Party parliamentary group announced in Berlin on Wednesday. Left-wing politicians see the committee's vote as a demand that the German governmenttake action to secure Assange's release.
Green MP Corinna Rueffer welcomed the German lawmakers' action on Twitter as an act to strengthen press freedom.
Edited by: Rina Goldenberg
This is a breaking news story and will be updated as more reactions come in.
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German MPs demand release of Julian Assange
- UK ruling on Assange extradition resets the game. What happens next? - Al Jazeera English - May 25th, 2024
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- The U.K. Will Let Assange Appeal Extradition, as Pressure Mounts on Biden To Drop Charges - Reason - May 25th, 2024
- WikiLeaks founder Assange wins right to appeal against an extradition order to the US - The Associated Press - May 25th, 2024
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- Julian Assange can appeal extradition to the US, UK court rules - CNN - May 25th, 2024
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- Julian Assange wins right to appeal against extradition: how did we get here and what happens next? - The Guardian - May 25th, 2024
- Timeline of the Assange legal saga over extradition to the US on espionage charges - The Associated Press - May 25th, 2024
- CPJ welcomes UK High Court decision to hear Julian Assange appeal - Committee to Protect Journalists - May 25th, 2024
- Julian Assange's Extradition Appeal Hearing: What Could Happen? - The New York Times - May 25th, 2024
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- The Guardian view on Julian Assange: time to dial this process down - The Guardian - May 25th, 2024
- UK dispatch: WikiLeaks founder Assange allowed to appeal extradition to US as hundreds gather outside High Court - JURIST - May 25th, 2024
- WikiLeaks' Julian Assange Can Appeal His Extradition to the US, British Court Says - WIRED - May 25th, 2024
- Julian Assange faces judgment day in years-long fight to stay out of US court - The Hill - May 25th, 2024
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- The case against Julian Assange has been a cruel folly. His right to appeal is a small step towards justice - The Guardian - May 25th, 2024
- Explained: The case against WikiLeaks Julian Assange, who can now appeal his extradition to the US - The Indian Express - May 25th, 2024
- Watch: Outside High Court as Julian Assange wins bid to appeal US extradition - The Independent - May 25th, 2024
- Wikileaks Assange Gets Another Shot at Extradition Appeal - Bloomberg - May 25th, 2024
- Assange wins High Court bid to appeal against extradition to US over spying charges - The Independent - May 25th, 2024
- End the punishment: On Julian Assange - The Hindu - May 25th, 2024
- U.K. High Court Grants Julian Assange the Right to Appeal U.S. Extradition - Democracy Now! - May 25th, 2024
- Julian Assange wins right to appeal extradition to United States - UPI News - May 25th, 2024
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- Julian Assange's Wife Urges Joe Biden to Drop Pursuit of Husband as he Wins Right to Appeal US Extradition Byline ... - Byline Times - May 25th, 2024
- Julian Assange Extradition Ruling: Everything We Know About WikiLeaks Case - Newsweek - May 25th, 2024
- Julian Assange Has Secured a Rare Legal Victory, But Press Freedom Still Hangs in the Balance - The Wire - May 25th, 2024
- Julian Assange can appeal extradition to the US, London High Court rules - The Register - May 25th, 2024
- Julian Assange Can Appeal Against Extradition To The U.S., London Court Rules - HuffPost - May 25th, 2024
- British court says Julian Assange can appeal his extradition to the US over espionage charges - Salon - May 25th, 2024
- There is a way out of the Assange legal quagmire the US should drop the case - The Guardian - May 25th, 2024
- London court says Assange can appeal extradition to the US - Euronews - May 25th, 2024
- Timeline of the Julian Assange legal saga as he makes a final bid ... - PBS - May 15th, 2024
- New Blog Article on ThinkCareBelieve: The Future of Free Speech Hangs on Important UK Court Decision For Julian ... - Yahoo Finance - May 15th, 2024
- WikiLeaks founder's fate will be known in just 7 days - Pearls and Irritations - May 15th, 2024
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- Julian Assange Extradition Decision: What to Know - The New York Times - April 28th, 2024
- Julian Assanges mission was to change the world - but at what cost? - CNN - April 28th, 2024
- Irish Nobel Peace Prize winner calls on Joe Biden to release Julian Assange in letter handed to U.S. Consulate - Radio Habana Cuba - April 28th, 2024
- Justice Department Reportedly in Discussions With Julian Assange Over Potential Plea Deal - The New York Sun - March 21st, 2024
- Julian Assange could plead guilty to lesser offence to avoid extradition to US - The Telegraph - March 21st, 2024
- WSJ: The Justice Department reportedly is negotiating a deal that would set Assange free - Voz Media - March 21st, 2024
- Minute by minute - The Guardian - March 21st, 2024
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- Last Days of Julian Assange in the United States - Consortium News - March 21st, 2024
- Assange in plea deal talks - Pearls and Irritations - March 21st, 2024
- UK/US: Time to end prosecution of Julian Assange, UN expert says - Pearls and Irritations - March 13th, 2024
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- Australian lawmakers approve motion calling for release of Julian Assange - The Associated Press - February 17th, 2024
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- Law professors to DOJ: Drop Assange prosecution - Freedom of the Press Foundation - February 17th, 2024
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- On eve of British hearings, Assange's brother Gabriel Shipton speaks out: This is Julian's last chance in the UK courts - WSWS - February 17th, 2024
- Days Before Extradition Hearing, Australian Parliament Tells US to Drop Assange Case - Common Dreams - February 17th, 2024
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- Australian Parliament Approves Motion Calling for Release of Julian Assange - Democracy Now! - February 17th, 2024
- Julian Assange extradition appeal verdict to be revealed in few days - Al Mayadeen English - February 17th, 2024
- 'Julian Assange Is Not Superhuman What Is Being Done to Him Is Unworthy of Any Democracy' Byline Times - Byline Times - February 17th, 2024
- Julian Assange 'will die' if extradited to US, wife warns - The Independent - February 17th, 2024
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- The fate of the free press is in your hands: join the Assange protest next week - Morning Star Online - February 17th, 2024
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- Julian Assange 'will die' if extradited to US, his wife warns - MSN - February 17th, 2024