Biden not considering pardoning Julian Assange: White House
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A requirement as part of the plea deal is that WikiLeaks remove any unpublished material on the US that they or their affiliates held.
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WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, right, arrives, surrounded by the media, at the United States courthouse where he is expected enter a plea deal, in Saipan, Mariana Islands, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre clarified on Thursday that President Joe Biden is not considering pardoning WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
"No, it’s not," Jean-Pierre stated during a press briefing in response to questions about the possibility of a pardon for Assange.
Assange had been imprisoned in the high-security Belmarsh Prison in London since April 2019 after British police were allowed to raid the Ecuadorian Embassy where he had sought asylum in 2012.
The US sought to put Assange on trial for publishing military secrets and evidence of war crimes in the American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is accused of publishing some 700,000 confidential documents relating to US military and diplomatic activities.
Earlier this week, a US judge sentenced Assange to time served as part of a plea deal with federal prosecutors, marking the conclusion of a 14-year legal saga.
A requirement as part of the plea deal is that WikiLeaks remove any unpublished material on the US that they or their affiliates held. According to Assange's US attorney Barry Pollack, WikiLeaks' published material was over ten years old, and he was unsure whether they still had unpublished records but noted that Assange fulfilled his obligations.
Upon returning to his home country, Australia, his wife Stella Assange told reporters that he is due to make a first public appearance once he recovers from years of solitary confinement.
Read more: With Assange banned, wife urges others to dig out info from US gov.
