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Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, left, leaves Britain's Royal Courts of Justice after his extradition appeal Lefteris Pitarakis/AP/Press Association Images
Assange

Judgement reserved in Assange extradition appeal

Lawyers failed to agree on the definition of ‘consent’ during the hearing. Assange is facing allegations of rape and sexual molestation if he is extradited to Sweden.

JUDGEMENT IN THE case of Julian Assange’s appeal against his extradition to Sweden has been reserved.

The prosecution says that the Wikileaks founder must be sent to Sweden to face allegations of rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion reports The Guardian. Lawyers described in court in graphic detail the details of the alleged sexual encounters between Assange and two women in question.

One of the women was quoted as saying that she didn’t “make a free choice”, and the Swedish lawyer said it was a “coercive, violent sex of the sort where the court would be entitled to infer there was no consent”, reports The Independent. It was also alleged that Assange had deliberately broken a condom.

Assange’s legal team claim that the woman was “railroaded” by police into making the allegations and that the Swedish prosecution is operating under a “19th century conception of consent”.

The judges have now retired to consider their verdict and Assange has returned to Norwich where he remains under house arrest.

Assange was applauded by supporters as he left the court. A small group of protesters gathered and sang songs outside the Royal Courts of Justice as the hearing went on inside:

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