Dear Friends,

WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange has been freed after reaching a plea deal with the United States that saw him plead guilty to one charge.

Assange has unjustly spent more than five years in prison for publishing leaked information exposing war crimes and human rights abuses, and more than 13 years total arbitrarily deprived of his liberty. If extradited to the US, he faced the possibility of 175 years in prison on 18 counts. 

Assange left Belmarsh high-security prison in London on the morning of 24 June, after spending 1,901 days there awaiting the outcome of extradition proceedings initiated by the US government. Today he reunited in Australia with his wife, Stella Assange, and their children - who have never met him outside of jail.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is hugely relieved by Assange’s release. We have monitored the entire extradition proceedings against him in UK courts. We fought for access to Belmarsh prison, where we were able to visit him six times. We engaged in advocacy with the US, UK, and Australian governments, and we launched widespread public mobilisation campaigns in his support.