Julian Assange arrested in London • Hacker News Board

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#711

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:39 PM UTC

codyb wrote: post #687

throwawaylolx wrote: post #500

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, moments before the arrest, many people in this thread were accusing him of paranoia/manipulative intents: >He claimed that his reason to do so was to avoid extradition to the US, but Sweden wasn't allowed to extradite him without UK's permission first [0]. He could've gone to Sweden and face the charges, and avoided this whole thing. But he had to make himself look like a victim of a conspiracy instead, and his…

The one about the CIA arresting or disappearing a man living in an Ecuadorian embassy in the center of London is interesting. Seems to imply the US can basically do anything anywhere and will if they want to, and really ignores the huge international fiasco from incredibly recently in the Khashoggi case. I like the think the people manning our intelligence agencies are a fair bit better than that personally. Although…

[deleted]

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#712

Post by OlleTO » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:39 PM UTC

codyb wrote: post #687

throwawaylolx wrote: post #500

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, moments before the arrest, many people in this thread were accusing him of paranoia/manipulative intents: >He claimed that his reason to do so was to avoid extradition to the US, but Sweden wasn't allowed to extradite him without UK's permission first [0]. He could've gone to Sweden and face the charges, and avoided this whole thing. But he had to make himself look like a victim of a conspiracy instead, and his…

The one about the CIA arresting or disappearing a man living in an Ecuadorian embassy in the center of London is interesting. Seems to imply the US can basically do anything anywhere and will if they want to, and really ignores the huge international fiasco from incredibly recently in the Khashoggi case. I like the think the people manning our intelligence agencies are a fair bit better than that personally. Although…

My comment was referring to the 1.5 years Assange lived openly in London, while Sweden was trying to get him extradited. I don't believe they'd storm an embassy to get him, but a couple of men grabbing him from off the street wouldn't be too out of character.

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#713

Post by fwip » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:39 PM UTC

Synaesthesia wrote: post #674

kmlx wrote: post #628

Earlier quoted context omitted.

what "massive corruption" are you referring to?

The DNC clearly favoring Clinton in an undemocratic fashion, as shown by the emails involving Debbie Wasserman Schultz

I don't like Hillary, but surely it's within the rights of a political party to select candidates however they please?

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#714

Post by wpdev_63 » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:40 PM UTC

sorenjan wrote: post #256

mikeq101101 wrote: post #144

The comments here disgust me. People here used to have some principles, now there's so many people just repeating establishment talking points.

I don't know to what you're referring, but the facts of the matter are: 1. He was wanted for questioning for rape and sexual misconduct in Sweden. According to police records, he had sex with a woman who demanded that he wore a condom, which he did at first. Then next morning she wakes up by him penetrating her without consent. She then asks "are you wearing anything", to which he replies "I'm wearing you". The sexua…

>1. He was wanted for questioning for rape and sexual misconduct in Sweden. According to police records, he had sex with a woman who demanded that he wore a condom, which he did at first. Then next morning she wakes up by him penetrating her without consent. She then asks "are you wearing anything", to which he replies "I'm wearing you". The sexual misconduct charges are dropped due to statutes of limitations, and the rape case is dormant due to low probablility of resolving it. Maybe they will open it up again.

That's typical CIA character assassination 101. Pay a prostitute to sleep with the perpetrator and bring up false charges.

Do you think it's a coincidence this happened right after the leaks?!

>2. Assange fought the extraditions through several UK courts. He had multiple chances do defend himself, and lost every one. He lost a high court appeal, then when the supreme court upheld that decision he fled to Ecuador.

UK is a pseudo puppet state of the US at this point. Fun fact - the UK government paid $300 million to the US government to spy on its own citizens.

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#715

Post by monocasa » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:40 PM UTC

DyslexicAtheist wrote: post #474

Crosseye_Jack wrote: post #383

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> or have his ashes thrown into the sea the same way as they did with Osama bin Laden. The UK won't extradite if the death penality is on the cards. http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2003/41/section/94

is this the case also for foreign nationals (e.g. Australians)? and in combination with terror laws and agreements[1] between UK/US (not just civil/criminal law)? I think if he does a little bit of time for jumping UK bail then the second he walks out from a UK prison the CIA will be all over abducting his ass. And he'll never be heard off again. I recall Hillary Clinton wasn't ashamed of suggesting "Can't we drone t…

The UK recently changed their stance wrt requiring no death penalties on extradition cases. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/jul/23/uk-will-not-...

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#716

Post by jsty » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:41 PM UTC

monocasa wrote: post #691

ben_w wrote: post #656

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From my perspective, the UK also has such a history. It’s a bit like avoiding jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire, but neglecting that the frying pan is full of oil until the oil catches fire and then being surprised that you’re on fire. And then saying “see, I told you about the fire”.

The UK previously didn't allow extraditions with the death penalty as an option, or extraordinary renditions, whereas Sweden allowed extraordinary renditions. However the UK has recently changed it's stance on allowing death penalty extraditions. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/jul/23/uk-will-not-...

I might be mis-reading the article, but it doesn't indicate that the policy on requiring pre-extradition guarantees against the death penalty since the people in question were never extradited from the UK in the first place.

As they're no longer British citizens, were arrested in Syria, and are already in the US awaiting trial, it doesn't seem the UK would have much basis to argue against prosecutors seeking the death penalty.

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#717

Post by jkaplowitz » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:42 PM UTC

antt wrote: post #650

jkaplowitz wrote: post #629

Earlier quoted context omitted.

According to the article, the crime for which he'd be extradited has a maximum penalty of five years in prison, not death.

1 hours ago it was 1 year for skipping bail. At the rate at which the maximum sentence is growing we should be seeing him hung and quartered by mid day tomorrow.

The extradition request arrived in 2012, but they managed to keep it secret until this arrest. Now that official press releases have come out from both countries, we know the charge underlying the extradition. The fact sheet linked from the UK press release explains that the rules for UK->US extradition would require consent from the UK, including consideration by the UK courts, of any additional offenses that the US may want to add while they have him in connection with this extradition.

https://homeofficemedia.blog.gov.uk/2019/04/11/extradition-f...

They may very well approve some additional offenses, but probably not ones with the death penalty.

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#718

Post by GVIrish » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:45 PM UTC

zug_zug wrote: post #581

techntoke wrote: post #453

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is ridiculous. No one is talking about death penalty except people trying to inflame the situation.

Eh, how can you know that? The US government has two contradictory personalities. A justice personality that is procedural and fair, and a military/spy personality that executes via drone and sets up Guantanamo. Since the latter seems to think it owes no explanation to anyone of whatever it does (and moreover tries to use courts to hide its mistakes after the fact), who are you to say that it's above executing?

The fact that Assange is being extradited not snatched via rendition means he is going to face the US justice system. He is being charged in Eastern District Virginia with conspiracy to commit computer hacking.

If Assange just disappeared one day, then maybe worries that he is going to receive extrajudicial punishment or indefinite detention would be warranted.

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#719

Post by rurban » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:46 PM UTC

idlewords wrote: post #659

Salamat wrote: post #481

Any possible relation to the arrest of Assange? IMF board approves $4.2 bln financing deal with Ecuador March 11 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund’s executive board approved the $4.2 billion financing deal with Ecuador https://www.reuters.com/article/ecuador-imf/imf-board-approv...

Call me a patsy, but it seems more likely that Ecuador kicked him out of the embassy because it asked him not to do certain things as a condition of his living there, and he did those things.

Naive patsy then.

Ecuador's governments have always been blackmailed by the US via the CIA. Moreno was just an intermediate for them, like Chavez, Allende or Lua, to get over with eventually. In the end there's always either a fascist putsch or electorial takeover. Philip Agee's book "Inside the Company: CIA Diary" explains all the gory details.

Re: Julian Assange arrested in London

#720

Post by AnnoyingSwede » Thu, Apr 11, 2019, 2:47 PM UTC

The word in media now is that if Obama was the president still Assange would have a better chance of getting fair treatment. This seems wrong to me. Julian served Trumps purpose by releasing the Clinton emails, making me think that Trump might actually swing on his harsh words (like he does with many other things) and grant amnesty to Julian? Takers?