There's fresh pressure on the US to release Julian Assange. Here's the situation

The US and UK are facing fresh pressure to drop their pursuit of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

Julian Assange is fighting extradition from the UK, where he has been detained for more than three years. Source: AP / Matt Dunham

Key Points

• Protestors are demanding the release of Julian Assange.
• The Wikileaks founder is fighting extradition on multiple fronts.
• He faces up to 175 years in prison.

Just weeks after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese declared "enough is enough" on the Julian Assange saga, Australian activists are turning their attention to London and Washington.

The Wikileaks founder has spent a decade in hiding or behind bars, pursued by the US over publications it claims endangered lives.

But as the Australian enters the final stages of his fight against extradition to the US, protesters rallied outside the British High Commission in Canberra on Tuesday to demand his release from a London prison cell.

Craig Andrews, co-convener of Alliance Against Political Prosecutions, said the movement is buoyed by Mr Albanese's call for a speedy resolution.

“We do need a little bit more pressure, and it has taken too long to get to this stage. I don’t think megaphone diplomacy is a bad thing in this case,” he told SBS News.

“We are encouraged. The next push now is against [US] President Biden.”

Here’s what you need to know.

What’s the legal situation?

It’s complex and being fought on multiple fronts.

Mr Assange remains locked in London's Belmarsh Prison, where he’s been for over three-and-a-half years following his arrest at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

He’d been at the embassy, where he was claiming asylum, for nearly seven years as he fought extradition to Sweden over unrelated rape claims.

Mr Assange was previously living at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. Source: AAP

The Wikileaks founder is still fighting extradition to the United States, where he could face up to 175 years behind bars.

Britain has approved the extradition, but Mr Assange is appealing that decision in the UK High Court. The case is expected to be heard next year.

Last month, his lawyers also filed an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights over his detention in the UK, which could also see his extradition blocked.

The US has reportedly said Mr Assange can serve any prison sentence in Australia.

What’s he accused of?

Illegally and recklessly endangering lives.

The US government claims he put its agents and local Afghans and Iraqis working with it under threat, after Wikileaks published their unredacted names.

He’s wanted on 18 counts, after the US Department of Justice accused Wikileaks of “one of the largest compromises of classified information in the history of the United States”. Seventeen of the charges carry a sentence of up to 10 years each while a charge of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion carries a sentence of up to five years.

The US stresses it is pursuing him for endangering lives, not acting as a publisher, potentially avoiding any First Amendment issues. The US First Amendment protects freedom of speech.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wants the matter resolved quickly. Source: AAP / Lukas Coch

The indictments include one charge under the Espionage Act, over leaked cables which Wikileaks published in 2011. That Act is usually reserved for spies, and has never been used to prosecute someone who published classified information.

He’s also accused of planning to hack US government computers in concert with Chelsea Manning, an army intelligence analyst who leaked information, and seeking classified documents.

An investigation in Sweden, where he was accused of multiple rapes, was dropped in 2019.

What is everyone saying?

The Australian government wants this over.

Mr Albanese says he’s had personal discussions with members of the US government, saying there “is nothing to be served” in dragging the process out.

“People will have different views about Julian Assange and about his actions, but with regard to his ongoing incarceration while these legal processes occur, I don't see that there is a purpose being served,” he said in November.

“I will continue to put that argument forward.”

But he has also said: "I don’t express any personal sympathy for the actions of Mr Assange".

A collection of news organisations that helped Wikileaks publish its trove have also piled on the pressure, writing an open letter demanding the US government drop its charges.

Civil liberties groups have warned for years the charges will have a chilling effect on journalism.

Ms Manning was granted clemency by former US president Barack Obama after spending six years behind bars, and the Biden Administration has expanded protections for journalists. But for now, its charges against Mr Assange stand.