*As always,
a good timeline lessens confusion
*December
2006:* Julian Assange, a former Australian computer hacker,
founds
Wikileaks.org <http://wikileaks.org/>.
The website aims to provide a platform for whistleblowers to post sensitive and
secret political
documents
while keeping their identity anonymous.
*February
2008:* Wikileaks exposes Swiss Bank, Julius Baer, for involvement in money
laundering. It publishes internal documents to show that the bank was helping
clients launder funds via the Cayman Islands. This leads to the first of many
legal charges against Wikileaks.
*November
2009:* Wikileaks releases a comprehensive archive of text pager messages
recorded in the US on September 11,2001, the day when hijacked airplanes
crashed into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington.
*April
2010:* Wikileaks releases a video of a 2007 US military helicopter
strike on
Baghdad, Iraq, and the casualties that resulted from this.
Bradley
Manning, an American soldier, is charged and arrested for leaking
the
information.
*July 2010:*
Wikileaks releases classified US military documents on the war in Afghanistan
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/the-war-logs>
revealing details of civilian victims and alleged links between Pakistan and the
Taliban.
*August
2010:* A Swedish court issues an arrest warrant for Assange on
charges of
rape made by two Swedish women, who were also former employees of Wikileaks but
then decides to postpone the warrant until November.
*October
2010:* Wikileaks releases some 400,000 accounts written by
American
soldiers from 2004 to 2009 revealing that the US decided to ignore cases of
torture by Iraqi authorities on civilians.
*November
2010:* Swedish prosecutor re-issues European arrest warrant for Assange. Ten
days later, Wikileaks releases classified US diplomatic
cables,
revealing assessments of American officials on a range of issues
together
with views of other governments.
*December
2010:* Assange hands himself over to London’s police and is
placed in custody
pending a Swedish court’s ruling on the extradition
request. A
few days later, Assange is released on bail and tells media that
the rape
allegations are part of a politically-motivated campaign to
undermine
him. He was ordered by the court to live at a supporter’s country side mansion
in eastern England.
*February
2011:* A British judge rules Assange can be extradited to Sweden to face sexual
assault allegations. He dismisses claims made by Assange’s lawyers who argued
that Assange would not receive a fair trial in Sweden. The 39-year-old denied
three allegations of sexual assault and one allegation of rape in Stockholm
last year.
*July 2011:*
Assange appeals against the extradition ruling.
*September
2011:* Assange’s unauthorised biography is released in England in which he
completely denies the sexual assault allegations made against him.
*October
2011:* Assange announces Wikileaks will temporarily stop
publishing
classified US diplomatic files to concentrate on fundraising for
the website
after incurring a 95% loss in its revenue due to a financial
blockade by
credit card companies such as MasterCard and Visa.
*November
2011:* British High Court judges reject Assange’s appeal against his
extradition to Sweden.
*January
2012:* Assange appeals his extradition at British Supreme Court.
*May 2012:*
British Supreme Court rejects Assange’s extradition appeal and rules that he
must be tried in Sweden.
*June 2012:*
Assange makes a plea for asylum in Ecuador after seeking
refuge at
the South American nation’s embassy in London. Ecuador’s foreign
minister
announced that they would be evaluating Assange’s request
according to
international law.
*June 28th
2012:* Assange ordered by British police to turn himself in on
an extradition
notice.
*June 29th
2012:* Assange refuses to turn
in
to British
police and officials say they will arrest him as soon as he
leaves
Ecuador’s embassy. Ecuador delays decision on Assange’s request for
asylum.
*July 2012:*
Wikileaks hires Spain’s former human rights judge, Baltasar
Garzon, to
lead the legal team fighting for Assange. Garzon is said to have met Assange at
the Ecuadorian embassy in London. read
*August
2012:* UK warns Ecuador it may raid its London embassy if it
Doesn’t hand
over Assange to the British police. Ecuador condemns such a threat and few
hours later, announces that it will grant Assange political
asylum.
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