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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Manning commutation could set up Assange extradition to US | Manning commutation could set up Assange extradition to US |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Now that President Barack Obama has commuted much of whistleblower Chelsea Manning’s prison sentence, will Wikileaks founder Julian Assange follow through on his promise to accept extradition to the US? | Now that President Barack Obama has commuted much of whistleblower Chelsea Manning’s prison sentence, will Wikileaks founder Julian Assange follow through on his promise to accept extradition to the US? |
| On Tuesday, Obama announced that he was granting clemency to Manning, along with 208 other people. The former US Army intelligence analyst will be freed on May 17, rather than in 2045 as originally intended by his conviction under the Espionage Act. | On Tuesday, Obama announced that he was granting clemency to Manning, along with 208 other people. The former US Army intelligence analyst will be freed on May 17, rather than in 2045 as originally intended by his conviction under the Espionage Act. |
| READ MORE: Obama commutes much of Chelsea Manning's sentence | READ MORE: Obama commutes much of Chelsea Manning's sentence |
| Five days before, Wikileaks tweeted that Assange was willing to make a deal if Manning was granted clemency. | Five days before, Wikileaks tweeted that Assange was willing to make a deal if Manning was granted clemency. |
| Assange has been living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012. The Australian has previously fought extradition to Sweden over accusations of rape, which he denies. | Assange has been living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012. The Australian has previously fought extradition to Sweden over accusations of rape, which he denies. |
| He has claimed the Swedish effort is a way to have him transferred to the US, which, as of May 2016, was actively investigating WikiLeaks’ activities. | He has claimed the Swedish effort is a way to have him transferred to the US, which, as of May 2016, was actively investigating WikiLeaks’ activities. |
| WikiLeaks and Assange released a statement in reaction to the announcement by the Obama administration, thanking “everyone who campaigned for Chelsea Manning's clemency.” | |
| “Your courage & determination made the impossible possible,” WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange tweeted. | |
| Assange however did not immediately specify whether he will honor his promise to be extradited to the US, where he could face possible espionage charges. | |
| READ MORE: Assange will agree to US extradition in exchange for Manning ‘clemency’ - WikiLeaks | READ MORE: Assange will agree to US extradition in exchange for Manning ‘clemency’ - WikiLeaks |
| Some believe the move to free Manning could serve as a trap to lure Assange out of the safety of the Ecuadorian compound in London. | |
| The US State Department’s spokesman, John Kirby said Tuesday that Washington used a variety of channels over the years to remind the international community about the “harm that continues to come from the information that Wikileaks obtains and Wikileaks then publishes” to US security interests. | |
| Kirby called Wikileaks activities a “problem”. | |
| “You can safely assume that on many levels here at the State Department, and I would venture to say across the interagency, there are constant ongoing discussions about...the harm that continues to come from the information that this organization gets and then publishes.” | |
| “It is not that we aren’t frustrated by the ability of this organization to leak harmful information, information that not only hurts our national security interests, but in some cases the national security interests of our allies, friends, and partners,” Kirby explained. |