NEW: Ecuador revoked Julian Assange’s diplomatic asylum only after back-channel negotiations, including a U.S. verbal pledge of no death penalty for Assange, sources tell ABC News.
Julian Assange gestures as he arrives at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, after the WikiLeaks founder was arrested by officers from the Metropolitan Police, April 11, 2019.
The process of moving Assange out of the Ecuadorian Embassy started a year ago, on March 7, 2018, when the Ecuadorians made their first request to the U.K.: a letter asking for written assurances that the U.K. would not extradite Assange to a country where he could face the death penalty, according to the Ecuadorian Interior Minister Maria Paula Romo.
Ecuador's direct outreach to the U.S. came six months later, through the country’s ambassador to Germany, Manuel Mejia Dalmau, according to U.S. and Ecuadorian officials. Dalmau sought a private "emergency meeting" in Berlin with the U.S. Ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, viewed as one of President Donald Trump’s closest envoys in Europe, the officials said.
At the time, Dalmau said Ecuador was spending between $30,000 and $35,000 per month to house Assange because of his need for extra security and his demands for extra space within the embassy, according to a senior U.S. official, who was not authorized to discuss the issue on the record.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
UK pledges it won't send Assange to country with death penalty: EcuadorBritain has guaranteed to Ecuador that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will not...
Read more »
The Latest: Australia opposed to death penalty for AssangeLONDON (AP) — The Latest on the arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in London (all times local): 4:30 a.m. Foreign Minister Marise Payne says Australia remains 'completely...
Read more »
Australia opposes death penalty as Assange supporters marchCanberra says it will oppose the death penalty for Australian native Julian Assange amid fears that he could be exposed to capital punishment if he is extradited to the US
Read more »
Bitter divisions on death penalty in U.S. top court exposed in Alabama showdownThe U.S. Supreme Court exposed its bitter divisions over the death penalty yet a...
Read more »
Assange attorney: Charges against WikiLeaks founder 'boil down' to source protectionThere are additional charges against Assange, a source told Yahoo News. While Assange’s attorneys were concerned with the precedent the charges would set, former colleagues of his were not surprised by them.
Read more »
Why did Ecuador give up Assange after seven years?Why did Ecuador give up Julian Assange? While the country had undoubtedly tired of its London house guest, the motivations for stripping the WikiLeaks founder of his asylum and allowing Metropolitan Police officers in are likely to have been more complex
Read more »
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange won't be given 'special treatment,' Australian prime minister saysAustralian Prime Minister Scott Morrison says Julian Assange, 'will get the same treatment as everybody else.' The WikiLeaks founder, who is Australian, was arrested in London and now faces extradition to the U.S.
Read more »
After years of giving refuge, Ecuador suspends Assange's citizenshipEcuador has suspended Julian Assange's citizenship and accused him and peop...
Read more »
Texas abortion bill proposes punishing women with death penalty, but will it pass?The “Abolition of Abortion in Texas Act” faces widespread opposition, even from various anti-abortion groups, such as Texans for Life.
Read more »