Assange wins asylum in Ecuador

Ecuador has decided to grant political asylum to Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder who sought refuge in the country’s embassy in Britain to avert extradition to Sweden. The move has triggered a diplomatic row between Britain and Ecuador and will be the subject of a meeting this Sunday of the South American regional bloc. “The Ecuador government, loyal to its tradition to protect those who seek refuge with us at our diplomatic missions, has decided to grant diplomatic asylum to Mr Assange,” Ecuadoran Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said at a news conference August 16. Patino said his government reached its decision after Britain, Sweden and the United States refused to provide guarantees that Assange would not be extradited to the United States where he fears trial for the release of a trove of classified US documents. He said if Assange were extradited to the US, he would not receive a fair trial.

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