Thread: WikiLeaks: British Police Arrest Assange

^^nice summary of the public evidence so far

As for this being a fit up:

there is the initial decision by a Swedish prosecutor that there was not enough evidence to proceed, a decision that was rapidly changed when it was realised who the accused was.

And the alleged links between one of the victims and main driver in the complaints to the CIA and her advice on how to deal with cheating boyfriends.

There's a huge amount of reasonable doubt in this case

Originally Posted by Boon Mee

Has the sun completely set on the so-called "British Empire" or what, eh?

Long, long ago, BM, do keep up

Originally Posted by Boon Mee

The cables unveiled on whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks also suggest Tripoli offered a “parade of treats” to the Scottish devolved government

A parade of treats, eh? I can see why the British caved in, just one treat is nice but a whole parade of them must be irresistible.

Originally Posted by larvidchr

The Swedish authorities have not released any specific information in accordance with the high standards the Swedish Judicial system follows in regards to the protection of accused and victims in criminal and sexual assault cases.

protection of accused




fokin beauty lars , got any more ?

Originally Posted by larvidchr

"unedifying and arguably unprecedented assault" on the reputations of two women

Didn't take 'em long at all to play the gender card.

Glad to be able to amuse you Mid Mate , but it is one of the fundamental principles of justice in scandinavia, those principles are taken very seriously, as are the weight on reasonable doubt, quality of Police investigation, forensic evidence ect. that in every case!, and not just cases concerning the rich and famous, the problem more often is the press and electronic media lambasting the system for letting guilty walk or sentencing criminals to lightly, than the opposite is the case.

Fairness and correct procedure both for Assange, and his alleged victims, is certainly much more secure, than they would ever be in a British or American courtroom, where justice to often are for sale, and where- Authority/Police corruption, media pressure, political pressure and dream-teams- have had decisive influence far to often, and where records of false convictions are much more damning than in Sweden.

But in the name of individuals rights they do have laws, that to many outsiders seems excessive in Sweden, for-instance the laws criminalising costumers to prostitution ect. but when you are in a foreign land you are obliged to follow the laws they have in place, and that's whether you personally deem those laws just or not, and whether you are aware of those laws or not, not knowing is no excuse in the eyes of the law.

Let's just for argument say Assange are having consensual sex with a Swedish lady, and in the middle of the proceedings she says "no get off" but Assange in his aroused state uses his physical powder to hold the lady down and finish his business, thinking WTF it's just a few thrusts more, according to Swedish law that is classed as rape.
Men might think that fair or not, but that's the law in Sweden, where they have decided as a soceity, that a woman at any time have the right to say no, and that women have exclusive rights over their bodies.

They believe this is Sweden being more advanced rather than backwards, many woman, also within marriages and relationships, experience sexual coercion, unwanted unsafe sex and rape, with most cases by far never reported to police, a male behaviour that is a daily occurrence on a surprising large scale according to surveys and study's made in many many countries, Swedish lawmakers/politicians have decided to make an effort in this area.

People can call that backwards if they like, but I don't think the Swedish Authorities give a fuck, they follow their own laws in their country.

the global tabloids are reporting his arrest for rape ........................

don't see any attempt by the prosecutors to correct this .

Originally Posted by larvidchr

according to Swedish law that is classed as rape.

jhc lars your just as bad

how can a woman cry rape after consensual sex, and claim to be rape only after she discovered he had another partner ? but a better question is why Assange not clear that up now by returning to Scandinavia and face the charges of that loony country

This is how good the Swedish law system is.

<H1 class=entry-title>Swedish Court Decides Sexual Assault is Not a Crime

by Cara on January 14, 2010
in Europe,International,bigotry,courts,misogyny,patriarchy,rape and sexual assault,sexual exploitation and harassment,violence against women and girls

Trigger Warning for descriptions of sexual assault, apologism, and victim-blaming
At a New Year’s party in Sweden, a 17-year-old girl laid down to sleep on a sofa. The 49-year-old father of the boy hosting the party proceeded to lift up her skirt while she was unconscious and photograph her genitals. He then, in some unspecified manner, spread the photo to other people.
The victim pressed charges, once she learned of what had been done to her. Then, the court dismissed the charges — not because they found that there was insufficient evidence, or because the victim changed her mind about pursuing the case, but because they said that lifting an unconscious person’s skirt without her consent and photographing her genitals, also without her consent, is not against the law.

</H1>Swedish Court Decides Sexual Assault is Not a Crime — The Curvature

Assange denied bail: now can he avoid extradition?
Tim Edwards
DECEMBER 8, 2010


Briefing: The charges against WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange – and his legal options

Julian Assange, the editor-in-chief of WikiLeaks, has been denied bail after appearing in court over alleged sexual offences. Assange is fighting extradition to Sweden, which issued a European arrest warrant for his arrest after complaints were made against him by two women.

Assange says the charges have no basis and believes the United States is behind the legal moves against him, because his website is responsible for leaking thousands of documents relating to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and the recent top secret US embassy cables.

What is Assange accused of?Julian Assange visited Sweden in August this year to speak at a seminar on ‘War and the role of the media’ in Stockholm. While there, he had consensual sex with two women, including the person whose flat he was staying at. The accusations levelled at Assange, one count of unlawful coercion, two counts of sexual molestation and one count of rape, appear to derive from his use or otherwise of condoms.

The charges against Assange were dropped by the prosecutor shortly after they were brought. However, on September 1 another prosecutor reopened the case after the women’s lawyer, a politician with an interest in gender equality issues, appealed against the decision not to proceed.

After months of indecision, Sweden finally issued a European arrest warrant this week, forcing the Metropolitan police to take action against Assange, who was staying in London.

What now?Assange has been refused bail and will be held until his extradition hearing, which must take place within three weeks. Under the terms of the European arrest warrant, Assange’s extradition – if it is enforced – must occur within 90 days.

What grounds for appeal does Assange have?Assange’s lawyer, Mark Stephens, says his client is yet to be directly informed of the details of the charges against him and this factor could form part of the WikiLeaks chief’s defence. It must be assumed that Sweden has laid charges against Assange or the European Arrest Warrant would not be valid.

Other options open to his legal team include appeals on the basis of his human rights, for example the risk that he may not get a fair trial because of his political opinions.

Stephens said last month: "I've worked with third world countries and authoritarian regimes where there has been more of an attempt at a fair process."

Assange cannot appeal on the strength or otherwise of the case against him – a point highlighted by UKIP MEP Gerard Batten, who told the BBC: "I don't know of the quality of the evidence in Assange's case but it does seem that he is involved in political turmoil and intrigue and there are a lot of people keen to shut him up and there is nothing a court in the UK can do to look at the evidence before they extradite him."

Can the US extradite Assange?Discussions have already taken place between Sweden and the US regarding the transfer of Assange into American hands, according to diplomatic sources. Sweden has an extradition treaty with the United States, but Washington could not apply for Assange's transfer until the rape charges are dealt with.

But it is difficult to see how a legal extradition from the US to Sweden could be argued. There is little chance of a successful case if the alleged offence is "political".

The US attorney general has said he might try and prosecute Assange under the Espionage Act – but that is not covered by the extradition treaty with Sweden.

IS AUSTRALIA HELPING ASSANGE?

Australia has to provide consular assistance to Assange, who is a citizen, but given the public pronouncements of the country's attorney general, Robert McClelland and prime minister Julia Gillard, it had been thought he could expect little more than this.

McClelland has said he "will support any law enforcement action that may be taken" against Assange - including by the US. Gillard has accused Assange of "illegal" conduct.

Assange wrote a damning editorial for the Australian, published on the day he was arrested, in which he observed that "the powers of the Australian government appear to be fully at the disposal of the US".

However, there are signs that Australia is now softening its stance. foreign minister Kevin Rudd has offered a defence of sorts for Assange, saying: "Mr Assange is not himself responsible for the unauthorised release of 250,000 documents from the US diplomatic communications network. The Americans are responsible for that."

Where does WikiLeaks stand now?Even if WikiLeaks can be closed down, it is basically impossible to ever remove the documents the site has so far released. By the time Assange was arrested today, there were 748 'mirror sites' available across the web, all of which contain the US embassy cables so far released.

What about the site’s funding?

The most serious problem for WikiLeaks at the moment could be that its sources of funding are drying up. Paypal has frozen the website’s account and Mastercard and Visa are refusing to process payments made to the organisation, which functions solely on donations from supporters.
Currently, the only ways to give money to WikiLeaks are a bank-to-bank transfer or to post a cheque.

Despite this, WikiLeaks is defiant. The organisation’s Twitter feed says: “Today's actions against our editor-in-chief Julian Assange won't affect our operations: we will release more cables tonight as normal."

thefirstpost.co.uk

Originally Posted by larvidchr

jhc what

Jesus H Christ , an expletive suggesting exasperation

^
thanks Mid, glad to be able to exasperate you then

Originally Posted by superman

This is how good the Swedish law system is.

<H1 class=entry-title>Swedish Court Decides Sexual Assault is Not a Crime

by Cara on January 14, 2010
in Europe,International,bigotry,courts,misogyny,patriarchy,rape and sexual assault,sexual exploitation and harassment,violence against women and girls

Trigger Warning for descriptions of sexual assault, apologism, and victim-blaming
At a New Year’s party in Sweden, a 17-year-old girl laid down to sleep on a sofa. The 49-year-old father of the boy hosting the party proceeded to lift up her skirt while she was unconscious and photograph her genitals. He then, in some unspecified manner, spread the photo to other people.
The victim pressed charges, once she learned of what had been done to her. Then, the court dismissed the charges — not because they found that there was insufficient evidence, or because the victim changed her mind about pursuing the case, but because they said that lifting an unconscious person’s skirt without her consent and photographing her genitals, also without her consent, is not against the law.

</H1>Swedish Court Decides Sexual Assault is Not a Crime — The Curvature

Yes strange decision IMO but as I posted-

"the problem more often is the press and electronic media lambasting the system for letting guilty walk or sentencing criminals to lightly, than the opposite is the case."

Looks like Assange will be safe as houses in Sweden then.



Culture culture culture, go to a Swedish beach or just walk the streets in Stockholm in the summer and you will know why nakedness is no big deal in Sweden.

WikiLeaks founder is jailed, secrets still flow
RAPHAEL G. SATTER

LONDON — WikiLeaks published a new set of cables Wednesday, and in a defiant message posted online the secret-spilling website promised that the leaks would keep on flowing despite the arrest and jailing of its founder on sex allegations.


Members of the media gather around a prison van as it leaves the rear entrance of Westminster Magistrates Court in London, Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2010, where WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was denied bail after appearing on an extradition warrant. Assange surrendered to London police as part of a Swedish sex-crimes investigation, the latest blow to an organization that faces legal, financial and technological challenges after releasing hundreds of secret U.S. diplomatic cables. If he challenges his extradition to Sweden, he will likely be remanded into custody or released on bail until another judge rules on whether to extradite him, a spokeswoman for the extradition department said on customary condition of anonymity.
(AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)


WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, back to camera, is driven into Westminster Magistrates Court in London Tuesday Dec. 7, 2010 after being arrested on a European Arrest Warrant. Assange is appearing at the court for his extradition hearing for sexual assault allegations in Sweden.
(AP Photo/ Stefan Rousseau/PA)


An artist impression by courts artist Elizabeth Cook of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's appearance at Westminster Magistrates Court in London, Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2010, where he was denied bail after appearing on an extradition warrant. Assange surrendered to London police as part of a Swedish sex-crimes investigation, the latest blow to an organization that faces legal, financial and technological challenges after releasing hundreds of secret U.S. diplomatic cables. If he challenges his extradition to Sweden, he will likely be remanded into custody or released on bail until another judge rules on whether to extradite him, a spokeswoman for the extradition department said on customary condition of anonymity.
(AP Photo/Elizabeth Cook-pa)


FILE - In this Oct. 23, 2010 file photo, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, attends a news conference in London. The lawyer for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he is arranging for British police to question the man who unleashed a tidal wave of secret documents on the Internet. Lawyer Mark Stephens told reporters Monday night in London that the Metropolitan Police had called him to say they had received the arrest warrant from Sweden for Assange, who has been staying at an undisclosed location in Britain.
(AP Photo/Lennart Preiss, File)

WikiLeaks is under pressure on many fronts: its editor-in-chief Julian Assange is in prison fighting extradition to Sweden. Nearly simultaneous moves by credit card companies Visa and MasterCard to stop processing donations to the website have impaired its ability to raise money, and mysterious cyberattacks have periodically crippled its servers.

In a message published to Twitter on Wednesday, spokesman Kristinn Hrafnsson shrugged off the pressure.

On Tuesday evening, "the latest batch of cables were released, and our media partners released their next batch of stories," Hrafnsson said. "We will not be gagged, either by judicial action or corporate censorship. ... Wikileaks is still online. The full site is duplicated in more than 500 locations. Every day, the cables are loaded more than 50 million times."

WikiLeaks has benefited from a massive groundswell of online support. Twitter is choked with messages of solidarity. The site's Facebook page has 1 million fans. And tech-savvy supporters are organizing boycotts and other stunts.

The latest cables cover the details of British-Libyan relations in the run-up to the release of convicted Lockerbie bomber Abdel Baset Ali al-Megrahi, a sensitive subject that roiled relations between Washington and London. Another cable describes, in detail, the eccentricities of Libya's Moammar Gadhafi, while the WikiLeaks website also details an underground Halloween party — complete with moonshine, top-shelf liquor and prostitutes — thrown by a wealthy Saudi prince in the city of Jeddah.

"Behind the facade of Wahhabi conservatism in the streets, the underground nightlife for Jeddah's elite youth is thriving and throbbing," the cable notes. The party-happy royal's name has been redacted.

Meanwhile, Assange faces a new extradition hearing next week, in which his lawyers say they will reapply for bail. The 39-year-old Australian is accused of rape, molestation and unlawful coercion stemming from separate sexual encounters in August with two women in Sweden. Assange denies the allegations.
___
Online:
WikiLeaks

ajc.com

Assange arrested in England
PETER GRIFFITHS

LONDON -- A socialite, a film director and a journalist took the witness stand in a London Liu Xiaobo court on Tuesday in a failed bid to stop WikiLeaks' Julian Assange from being jailed while he fights extradition to Sweden for alleged sex crimes.

The WikiLeaks founder made his first public appearance since the release of thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic cables in the dock of Court One at Westminster magistrates court, a short walk from the Houses of Parliament.

Wearing a navy suit and open-necked white shirt, he gave a half-smile and waved twice to journalists in the press gallery before taking his seat next to a pair of security guards behind tall panels of toughened glass. He watched impassively as his lawyers called several high-profile witnesses prepared to back his fight against extradition and each offer $31,600 to persuade the court that he would not abscond.

English film director Ken Loach said he admired Assange.

"The work he has done has been a public service," Loach told the court. "We are entitled to know the dealings of those who govern us."

Award-winning Australian journalist John Pilger said he held Assange in "very high regard" and thought the allegations of sexual assault against two women were baseless.

"These charges against him in Sweden are absurd and were judged absurd by a senior Swedish prosecutor," Pilger told the court. "It would be a travesty for Mr. Assange to go within that kind of Swedish system."

British socialite Jemima Khan said she was prepared to offer "whatever sum is required" to act as a surety.

Despite the huge global interest in Assange, 39, and WikiLeaks, Judge Howard Riddle reminded the court that the extradition hearing had nothing to do with the website that Assange founded.

"This case is not on the face of it about WikiLeaks," he said. "These are extremely serious allegations ... of serious sexual offences."

Prosecution lawyer Gemma Lindfield, representing the Swedish authorities, said the case contained allegations of four sexual assaults by Assange against two women in Stockholm in August.

Assange is accused of using "forceful coercion" against a woman identified as Miss A on the night of Aug. 14.

He is accused of holding her down in a sexual manner. The second charge is that Assange "sexually molested her" by ignoring her request for him to use a condom when having sex with her. Thirdly, Assange is said to have "deliberately molested" Miss A by pressing his body against her.

The fourth charge relates to "Miss W", who alleged Assange had sex with her without a condom while she was sleeping.

thepeterboroughexaminer.com

Justice Department Studies WikiLeaks Prosecution
CHARLIE SAVAGE
Wednesday, December 8, 2010

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department, in considering whether and how it might indict Julian Assange, is looking beyond the Espionage Act of 1917 to other possible offenses, including conspiracy or trafficking in stolen property, according to officials familiar with the investigation.

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. acknowledged this week that there were problems with the Espionage Act, a World War I-era law that says the unauthorized possession and dissemination of information related to national defense is illegal. But he also hinted that prosecutors were looking at other statutes with regard to Mr. Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks.

“I don’t want to get into specifics here, but people would have a misimpression if the only statute you think that we are looking at is the Espionage Act,” Mr. Holder said Monday at a news conference. “That is certainly something that might play a role, but there are other statutes, other tools that we have at our disposal.”

Last week, The New York Times and four other news organizations began carrying articles based on an archive of a quarter-million confidential State Department cables obtained by WikiLeaks and made available to them. After WikiLeaks released a batch of government documents concerning Iraq and Afghanistan in July, Mr. Holder and the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Robert S. Mueller III, both said the leaks were being investigated, and Mr. Assange said United States officials had previously warned his organization that there had been “thoughts of whether I could be charged as a co-conspirator to espionage, which is serious.”

Mr. Assange was arrested Tuesday in Britain in connection with a Swedish investigation into accusations of sexual offenses. But United States law enforcement officials said the fact that he was in custody did not affect their deliberations about whether he might be charged in this country in connection with the publication of leaked government documents.

Prosecutors have used the Espionage Act to convict officials who leaked classified information. They have never successfully convicted any leak recipient who then passed the information along, however, and the Justice Department has never tried to prosecute a journalist —which Mr. Assange portrays himself as being — under either a Republican or a Democratic administration.

Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, independent of Connecticut, said Tuesday on Fox News that he believed The Times should be investigated alongside WikiLeaks, although he cautioned, “This is very sensitive stuff because it gets into the America’s First Amendment.”

“I certainly believe that WikiLleaks has violated the Espionage Act, but then what about the news organizations — including The Times — that accepted it and distributed it?” Mr. Lieberman said, adding: “To me, The New York Times has committed at least an act of bad citizenship, and whether they have committed a crime, I think that bears a very intensive inquiry by the Justice Department.”

A government official familiar with the investigation said that treating WikiLeaks different from newspapers might be facilitated if investigators found any evidence that Mr. Assange aided the leaker, who is believed to be a low-level Army intelligence analyst — for example, by directing him to look for certain things and providing technological assistance.

If Mr. Assange did collaborate in the original disclosure, then prosecutors could charge him with conspiracy in the underlying leak, skirting the question of whether the subsequent publication of the documents constituted a separate criminal offense. But while investigators have looked for such evidence, there is no public sign suggesting that they have found any.

Meanwhile, according to another government official familiar with the investigation, Justice Department officials have also examined whether Mr. Assange and WikiLeaks could be charged with trafficking in stolen government property.

But scholars say there might be legal difficulties with that approach, too, because the leaked documents are reproductions of files the government still possesses, not physical objects missing from its file cabinets. That means they are covered by intellectual property law, not ordinary property law.

“This is less about stealing than it is about copying,” said John G. Palfrey, a Harvard Law School professor who specializes in Internet issues and intellectual property.

Intellectual property law criminalizes the unauthorized reproduction of certain kinds of commercial information, like trade secrets or copyrighted music, films and software files. But those categories do not appear to cover government documents, which by law cannot be copyrighted and for which there is no ordinary commercial market.

Mr. Assange has received leaks of private-sector information as well. He has indicated, for example, that his next step might be to publish a copy of the contents of a hard drive belonging to an executive at a bank — apparently, Bank of America.

If he does so, some of the problems associated with trying to find a way to prosecute him for distributing leaked government documents could disappear. The works of a person in the private sector are automatically copyrighted, and bank documents could be deemed trade secrets.
“If you had large-scale dissemination of a private-sector company’s records, there might be some kind of argument there similar to commercial espionage,” said James Boyle, a Duke University law professor who specializes in intellectual property and public-domain issues.

There would still be obstacles. For example, Mr. Assange could claim that his distribution of the files was allowable under the “fair use” exception to copyright law and that it was not for financial gain. Still, “fair use” does not allow wholesale reproduction, and prosecutors could argue that his organization was raising money from its activities.

Even so, Mr. Boyle cautioned, intellectual property law is not well designed to prosecute what WikiLeaks is doing.

“The reason people are upset about this is not about commercial theft or misusing the fabulous original expressions of U.S. diplomats,” Mr. Boyle said. “I think it is the wrong tool. You go after Al Capone for tax evasion rather than bootlegging — fine. But this is a bridge too far.”

ocala.com

Originally Posted by Mid

He is accused of holding her down in a sexual manner.

Oh shit, that's me doomed if I ever go to Sweden then, I'm a serial offender and a hardened criminal

Ministry of Justice quashes rumour Wikileaks founder Julian Assange had been denied a legal visit
James Trueman
Wednesday 8th December 2010

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has confirmed Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has a legal visit booked at Wandsworth Prison - despite a rumour the prison did not “have the capacity to facilitate” one.

In a Twitter message posted by a Sky News reporter, it was suggested Mr Assange’s lawyer, Mark Stephens, had been told Wandsworth Prison does not "have the capacity to facilitate a legal visit".

However, an MoJ spokesperson confirmed that Mr Assange does have a visit booked with his legal representation - but could not comment any further on the matter.

Mr Assange, 39, was arrested yesterday by the Metropolitan Police after he held a voluntary appointment with officers regarding his European arrest warrant for sexual assault allegations.

The Australian national appeared in Westminster Magistrates’ Court yesterday but was refused bail by the judge and taken to HMP Wandsworth, where he will remain in custody until December 14, when his full extradition hearing takes place.

Mr Stephens has vowed to apply for bail again. Meanwhile, Wikileaks continues to disclose tens of thousands of sensitive US government diplomatic cables to a number of national newspapers around the world.

yourlocalguardian.co.uk

This case has nothing to do with Julian Assenge as Wikileaker and everything to do with the private Julian Assange.
That he wouldn't get a fair trial because of his Wikileaks is plain bull and so is his laywers statement about a more fair process in 3rd world totalitarian regimes, all this is after-constructions to cover up for why he during 2-3 months didn't travel back to Sweden - he has known all the time that he was wanted for questioning.

The article from thefirstpost.co.uk (Mid's post #37) is one of the more balanced that I've seen in international press and is also in line with how the Swedish press reports, there has actually not been much at all written in Sweden about the case until 2-3 days ago and very little considering that Julian Assange is a public person.

no doubt publicity stunts are being exploited here, and Assange is playing silly to draw public attention

yet, it revealed certain character flaws in certain important public figures

I don't know this website 'Wired" but this was linked in the news at home, and bear in mind that they only have one source-


Link: ‘Chaos’ at WikiLeaks Follows Assange Arrest | Threat Level | Wired.com

Next post
‘Chaos’ at WikiLeaks Follows Assange Arrest

• By Kevin Poulsen
• December 7, 2010 |
• 6:34 pm |
• Categories: WikiLeaks

The arrest without bail of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Tuesday has left the organization in a state of uncertainty, despite transition plans laid out prior to his surrender to British police, according to one dispirited WikiLeaks activist who spoke to Threat Level on condition of anonymity.
Assange left Icelandic television journalist Kristinn Hrafnsson in charge of the group in his absence, the activist said. But now the embattled organization’s secrecy and compartmentalization are apparently hindering its operations.
Specifically, midlevel WikiLeaks staffers have been mostly cut off from communicating with hundreds of volunteers whose contact information was stored in Assange’s private online-messaging accounts, and never shared with others.
“There is an ongoing plan, but that plan was only introduced to a few staffers — key staffers,” explained the source. “We are experiencing chaos.”
WikiLeaks was scrambling to produce a statement in a dozen languages Tuesday to address Assange’s arrest.
Assange appeared in Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London Tuesday. The judge cited Assange’s itinerant lifestyle and denied him bail, despite the fact that he turned himself in.
The arrest came nine days after WikiLeaks began publishing from its cache of more than 250,000 leaked U.S. State Department diplomatic cables, which are trickling out at a rate of about a hundred a day.
That publication schedule will continue uninterrupted, according to a tweet on WikiLeaks’ Twitter feed following Assange’s detention. “Today’s actions against our editor-in-chief Julian Assange won’t affect our operations: We will release more cables tonight as normal,” read one message. A second tweet added: “Let down by the UK justice system’s bizarre decision to refuse bail to Julian Assange. But #cablegate releases continue as planned.”
Assange “is accused by the Swedish authorities of one count of unlawful coercion, two counts of sexual molestation and one count of rape, all alleged to have been committed in August 2010,” British police said.
Assange indicated in court that he would fight extradition to Sweden, according to reports. He is set to appear in court again Dec. 14.
Charismatic and driven, Assange has been WikiLeaks’ public face and prime mover for four years. It was Assange who personally managed the site’s most important leaker — Army Pfc. Bradley Manning, according to Manning’s conversations with the ex-hacker who turned him in.
And when Assange’s autocratic leadership style was challenged by some staffers last year, he described his importance to the organization in no uncertain terms. “I am the heart and soul of this organization, its founder, philosopher, spokesperson, original coder, organizer, financier and all the rest.”
His absence, says the source, is being felt acutely. “The organization will most likely start to fall apart now.”
Photo: Kristinn Hrafnsson of Wikileaks
Lennart Preiss/AP

^ If true, then he has been totally set up.....