Moreno Says Assange Repeatedly Violated Terms of Asylum in London - Reports

16:16 GMT, 2 April 2019

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who has found shelter at Ecuador's embassy in London, has been avoiding extradition to the US since he published a number of classified documents which were allegedly leaked from US government agencies.

Sputnik

Ecuador's President Lenin Moreno said in an interview with a local media outlet on Tuesday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who currently resides in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, has violated his terms of asylum numerous times.

He went on to note that the whistleblower does not have the right to "hack private accounts or phones".

The president's remark comes after in January Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Jose Valencia argued that Assange should surrender to the UK authorities.

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Last year, Ecuadorian officials introduced home rules, restricting Assange's visits and communications.

Since 2012, Assange has been residing in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. The whistleblower fears he will be extradited to the United States if he leaves the premises. The Swedish authorities also prosecuted Assange on sex offence charges, which he denied.

Julian Assange started making headlines after his whistle-blowing organisation, WikiLeaks, revealed thousands of secret US documents and government records. He became the target of a US probe under the Espionage Act in 2010, but has not been indicted yet.