The comments came as Julian Assange makes one last attempt to block his extradition from the UK to the US, where he faces decades in prison over spying charges.
US prosecutors are seeking to put Assange, 52, on trial on 18 counts relating to WikiLeaks’ high-profile release of vast troves of confidential US military records and diplomatic cables.
Assange ‘will die’ if extradited to US, confidant of WikiLeaks founder says
At the start of what could be his last chance to stop his extradition from Britain to the United States at London’s High Court, Assange’s lawyers and wife said the case was politically motivated and an attack on all journalists.
“Julian is a political prisoner and his life is at risk. What happened to Navalny can happen to Julian,” she told reporters outside court where a large crowd called for his release.
“He is being prosecuted for engaging in ordinary journalistic practice of obtaining and publishing classified information, information that is both true and of obvious and important public interest.”
Lawyer Edward Fitzgerald later described the case as a “legally unprecedented prosecution” and said that the 52-year-old faced a “real risk he will suffer a flagrant denial of justice” if he was extradited.
Assange was absent due to illness at the start of the two-day session.
