Julian Assange has "paid his dues" over his WikiLeaks disclosures, according to a former US intelligence chief, as the Australian activist finally walked free from prison after more than five years.

James Clapper, who served as US director of national intelligence when Assange leaked classified documents in 2010, said he believed that the resolution of the case had worked out "pretty well" and that the key factor was Assange's decision to plead guilty to a single espionage charge. "The law enforcement and intelligence community would not have bought into this without that," Clapper said. "He's paid his dues. There was a damage assessment done at the time - there was concern but I don't recall direct proof that assets in Afghanistan and Iraq supporting or helping the US were exposed."

Assange left Belmarsh Prison on Monday morning after spending 1,901 days there, according to a statement from WikiLeaks. He was granted bail by the High Court in London and released at Stansted Airport, where he boarded a plane and departed the UK. The aircraft landed in Bangkok around noon local time on Tuesday for refuelling before continuing to the Mariana Islands, a US commonwealth in the Western Pacific, where his plea hearing and sentencing are scheduled for Wednesday.

Court papers filed by the US Justice Department show Assange is scheduled to appear in federal court to plead guilty to an Espionage Act charge of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified national defence information. The Justice Department has agreed to drop 18 espionage charges against him, charging him instead with conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information. Under the terms of the deal, Assange will be sentenced to 62 months in prison, with the five years he has already spent incarcerated in HMP Belmarsh counting towards that period. After the hearing, he will be free to return to his home country of Australia.

Stella Assange, his wife and a lawyer who has worked on his legal team, said the deal involved time served and that her husband would "be a free man" once it was signed off by a judge. Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, she described an "agreement in principle" between Assange and the US Department of Justice, adding that she was limited in what she could say before the judge gave formal approval. She told the broadcaster that she was "elated" and felt a "whirlwind of emotion" following his release.

Asked about the charge her husband would plead guilty to, Mrs Assange said: "Yes, the charge concerns the Espionage Act, and obtaining and disclosing national defence information. The important thing here is that the deal involved time served - that if he signed it, he would be able to walk free."

The couple's two young children were not yet aware of their father's release, she said. "Not yet. All I told them was that there was a big surprise and on the morning that we left, I told them we were heading to the airport and we got on the plane and I told them that we were going to visit our family, their cousin, their grandfather and so on. They still don't know - we've been very careful because obviously no one can stop a five and a seven-year-old from shouting it from the rooftops at any given moment."

She added that her children had only ever seen Assange inside Belmarsh Prison: "All their interactions with Julian have been in a single visitors room inside Belmarsh Prison. It's always been for a little more than an hour at a time. It's been very restrictive."

The release of Assange, who is 52, brings to an end one of the most contentious legal battles involving press freedom and national security in recent history. His case began in 2010, when WikiLeaks published hundreds of thousands of leaked documents relating to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, along with diplomatic cables. The leaks were among the largest breaches of classified information in American military history, prompting anger from US officials and praise from press freedom advocates who argued that the disclosures exposed war crimes, civilian casualties and diplomatic misconduct.

Assange was first arrested in London in December 2010 after Swedish authorities issued a European arrest warrant over allegations of sexual misconduct. He denied the allegations, which were later dropped, and said he feared extradition to Sweden would lead to his removal to the United States. In 2012, he sought sanctuary in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he remained for nearly seven years. His asylum was withdrawn in April 2019, and British police entered the embassy and arrested him. He was subsequently taken to Belmarsh, a high-security prison in south-east London, where he fought extradition to the US on espionage charges.

Over the years, Assange's legal team argued that the US prosecution was politically motivated and that he could not receive a fair trial. They also contended that his actions were those of a journalist publishing information in the public interest. In June 2020, a UK district judge refused to extradite Assange, citing concerns about his mental health and the risk of suicide. However, that decision was overturned on appeal by the US, and in 2022 the High Court ruled in favour of extradition after receiving assurances from Washington about his treatment.

The breakthrough in his case emerged earlier this month. Court documents reveal that a plea agreement was signed on June 19. In a court order released on Tuesday, Dame Victoria Sharp and Mr Justice Johnson said Assange had left the jurisdiction of England and Wales at 6.36pm on Monday. The judges added that it was "anticipated that a plea will be entered and accepted on Wednesday, June 26 2024, after which the United States have undertaken to withdraw the extradition request". They also said that lawyers for Assange and the US authorities would need to provide an agreed document related to the pending extradition appeal proceedings by Friday afternoon.

The resolution of Assange's case has drawn sharply divided reactions. Anthony Albanese, the Australian prime minister, told the nation's parliament on Tuesday: "We want him brought home to Australia." He said the case had dragged on for too long and that "there is nothing to be gained by his continued incarceration".

Alexander Downer, a former Australian foreign secretary and former high commissioner to the UK, said the plea deal was an appropriate way to end the saga. "Julian Assange has admitted his guilt in this case to conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information which is an extremely serious offence, so he's pleaded guilty to that," he said. "The time he has spent in jail in the UK will be taken into account in determining his release, but I don't think we should walk past the fact that it is a very serious charge that he's admitted to."

Mike Pence, the former US vice president, criticised the plea deal as a "miscarriage of justice". In a post on X, formerly Twitter, he said: "There should be no plea deals to avoid prison for anyone that endangers the... national security of the United States. Ever."

Journalist organisations, however, welcomed Assange's release as a victory for media freedom. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) described it as a "significant victory for media freedom". Its president, Dominique Pradalie, said: "Julian Assange is free. Victory for the right to inform and to be informed. Victory for journalists around the world." The IFJ's general secretary, Anthony Bellanger, said: "The attempted prosecution of Julian Assange cast a dark shadow over journalists, particularly those who cover national security issues. Had Assange gone to prison for the rest of his life, any reporter handed a classified document would fear facing a similar fate."

The Crown Prosecution Service also commented on the case. Stephen Parkinson, director of public prosecutions, said the Assange case had absorbed considerable time and resource over many years. "The intended outcome of the plea agreement will be to accomplish the primary objective of delivering justice. It will also save the continuing substantial resource outlay involved in litigating this matter further in England." John Sheehan, head of extradition at the CPS, said the case had been highly complex and that the unit had faced novel and challenging legal issues. "This has culminated in facilitating the arrangements necessary to enable Mr Assange to leave the UK legally and safely."

Assange's father, John Shipton, said his son's freedom had "lifted a huge burden" from the family. Assange's wife also said the priority now was for her husband to regain his health after five years in detention. "He's been in a terrible state for five years. To just be in contact with nature, that's what we both desire for now," she said. "And to have time and privacy and just start this new chapter."

The case has raised unresolved questions about the treatment of whistleblowers and the boundaries of press freedom. While US authorities have maintained that Assange's actions went beyond journalism and endangered lives, supporters say his prosecution criminalised routine reporting practices and would have a chilling effect on investigative journalism. The plea deal, which involves Assange pleading guilty to a single felony count, is seen by many as a pragmatic compromise that allows both sides to claim a degree of victory.

Assange is due to appear before the US District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands at 9am local time on Wednesday. The remote Pacific territory outside Guam is a relatively unusual venue for federal criminal proceedings, but was chosen for its proximity to Australia and Assange's preference to avoid travelling to the US mainland. After the judge signs off the deal, Assange is expected to board a flight to Australia, where he will be reunited with his wife and children.

The WikiLeaks founder's journey has taken him from a teenage hacking culture in Melbourne to global notoriety as the face of unauthorised disclosure. His supporters have long argued that he belongs in the tradition of investigative journalism, exposing abuses of power. His detractors have portrayed him as a reckless figure who damaged American national security and put lives at risk. The plea deal now allows him to return home, but the debate over his legacy is unlikely to disappear.

For now, Assange's focus is on freedom. As his wife said: "It's just been non-stop for the past, I think, 72 hours. It's a whirlwind of emotions. I mean I'm just elated. It's just incredible."

Source: Yahoo News News