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4/6/22
Spanish High Court orders Pompeo to Testify over Plots to Assassinate Assange
Spanish High Court orders Pompeo to Testify over Plots to Assassinate Assange
It has been reported today that the Spanish High Court has ordered former CIA Director, and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, to explain an alleged plot to assassinate Australian journalist Julian Assange. This follows an earlier credible report from Yahoo News about plots to poison, kidnap and even shoot Mr Assange on the streets of London, including interviews with 30 top US officials.
Aotearoa 4 Assange’s National Co-ordinator Matt Ó Branáin says: ‘The credible reports that the US plotted to assassinate a South Pacific journalist should terrify New Zealand journalists. Aotearoa 4 Assange wrote an open letter this week to Jacinda Ardern, asking her to stand with Australian PM Albanese’s calls to bring Julian home. These developments only make it more incumbent on our Prime minister to act with urgency, and call on our allies the UK and US bring an end to this disgraceful, dangerous persecution.’
‘Every major human rights and press freedom group, including Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commissioner of the Council of Europe, has called the charges and imprisonment of Assange a threat to investigative reporting worldwide. There isn’t a comparable case and it must be stopped if we are to maintain our right to call truth to power. Something every kiwi holds dearly. A free and independent press is the foundation of global justice.’
MP and Human Rights lawyer Golriz Ghahraman has previously tweeted ‘The threat to wikileaks founder Julian Assange’s freedom is a threat to press freedom around the world. The UK Magistrate Court has now ordered it but the Home Sec must decline. The UK has an obligation to avoid extradition to a place where he faces ill treatment and torture.’
Helen Clark has previously commented ‘You do wonder when the hatchet can be buried with Assange, and not buried in his head by the way?. . . The real issue really is the activities they were exposing, not their actions of exposure.’
Story:
Original Spanish: https://www.abc.es/espana/abci-audiencia-nacional-cita-exsecretario-estado-eeuu-202206030238_noticia.html
English report: https://www.thedailybeast.com/spanish-court-demands-mike-pompeo-testify-on-apparent-plot-to-kidnap-or-kill-wikileaks-founder-julian-assange
Aotearoa 4 Assange
Contact Matt Ó Branáin for comment
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