Wikileaks' Julian Assange given permission to appeal against U.S. extradition

FILE PHOTO: Stella Assange, the wife of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange along with supporters Julian Assange, begin a protest march from the High Court to Downing Street, on the day Assange appeals against his extradition to the United States, in London, Britain, February 21, 2024. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo

LONDON (Reuters) - WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange's battle to avoid extradition to the United States received a huge boost on Monday when London's High Court ruled that U.S. assurances over his case were unsatisfactory and he would get a full appeal hearing.

In March, the High Court provisionally gave Assange, 52, permission to appeal on three grounds. But it gave the U.S. the opportunity to provide satisfactory assurances that it would not seek the death penalty and would allow him to seek to rely on a First Amendment right to free speech in a trial.