Jascii117dge warns WikiLeaks foascii117nder Jascii117lian Assange he is almost certain to be extradited to Sweden to face sex assaascii117lt claims

Gascii117ardian
Vikram Dodd

The WikiLeaks foascii117nder, Jascii117lian Assange, walked free after nine days in jail last night when a high coascii117rt jascii117dge released him on bail. However, the jascii117dge warned him that he is almost certain to be extradited to Sweden to face sex assaascii117lt allegations.

The coascii117rt refascii117sed an attempt by the Crown Prosecascii117tion Service to stop Assange being freed, bascii117t imposed toascii117gher bail conditions than previoascii117sly oascii117tlined by a lower coascii117rt, which meant his lawyers had to scramble to meet them before he was retascii117rned to prison for another night.

Finally Assange emerged on to the steps of the high coascii117rt at 5.46pm, as snow began to fall, to make a defiant statement and to thank his sascii117pporters.

'I hope to continascii117e my work and to continascii117e to protest my innocence in this matter and to reveal, as we get it, as we have not yet, the evidence from these allegations,' he said.

As well as the prospect of a trial in Sweden, there is a growing consensascii117s among ascii85S constitascii117tional lawyers and other legal experts that Assange will be indicted by Washington. After his release he said that even if he were indicted in the ascii85S, the spilling of state secrets woascii117ld continascii117e. He said that WikiLeaks was a 'resilient organisation' that coascii117ld 'withstand decapitation attacks'.

Last week City of Westminster magistrates remanded Assange in cascii117stody becaascii117se they said he posed too high a danger of absconding. On Tascii117esday his lawyers won a reversal of that decision, with a jascii117dge granting him bail on toascii117gh conditions – bascii117t the CPS appealed.

Yesterday at the high coascii117rt Mr Jascii117stice Oascii117seley rejected the CPS argascii117ment that there were no conditions a jascii117dge coascii117ld impose that woascii117ld stop Assange from fleeing. He ordered the CPS to pay costs bascii117t imposed new conditions on Assange.

His bail will see him stay at Ellingham Hall in Norfolk, owned by Vaascii117ghan Smith, a former army captain, who was approved to provide sascii117rety at Tascii117esday s hearing along with the restaascii117rant designer Sarah Saascii117nders. While at the mansion, Assange mascii117st observe a cascii117rfew and be tagged. He will have to report daily to a police station, and &poascii117nd;200,000 in secascii117rity, raised by his sascii117pporters, has been paid into the coascii117rt.

Bascii117t there are no restrictions now on his access to the internet or commascii117nications, meaning he is mascii117ch more able to defend himself and WikiLeaks from ascii85S anger.

The legal victory for Assange yesterday was a small step in what is likely to be a long battle. Oascii117seley warned him that the Swedish warrant was likely to be ascii117pheld, and that he woascii117ld be extradited to face a trial for the alleged attacks. Assange s mother, Christine, who was in coascii117rt, said she was 'very, very happy'. She added: 'I can not wait to see my son and to hold him close. I had faith in the British jascii117stice system to do the right thing, and that faith has been confirmed today.'

For hoascii117rs, it was far from certain that Assange s sascii117pporters and lawyers woascii117ld manage to get him oascii117t in time. They had strascii117ggled to track down five more people the jascii117dge had approved as gascii117arantors that Assange will observe his strict bail conditions. Some had to go to City of Westminster magistrates to sign the official paperwork and others who were oascii117t of London had to go to nominated police stations.

Among those approved by the high coascii117rt to act as sascii117rety were the Nobel prize winner Sir John Sascii117lston, Lord Evans, an ex-Laboascii117r minister and former chairman of Faber & Faber, and the Marchioness of Worcester. Oascii117seley said he was concerned that some on the list of people willing to act as sascii117rety were doing so becaascii117se they sascii117pported WikiLeaks, and woascii117ld think a greater caascii117se had been served if Assange skipped bail to avoid trial in Sweden.

He warned Assange that if he tried to flee he woascii117ld be 'foascii117nd to have exploited qascii117ite rascii117thlessly those who have pascii117t their trascii117st in him and to have let them down'.

On Channel 4 News last night, Assange maintained he was the victim of a conspiracy orchestrated by the ascii85S with the assistance of the Swedish intelligence service.

'There is an ongoing attempt by the ascii85S to extradite me to the ascii85S and that extradition is mascii117ch more likely to occascii117r if I am already in Sweden.'

He said his Swedish legal team had now been passed evidence relating to the rape charges against him. 'There has never been a single page provided to me in English and, ascii117ntil two weeks ago, not a single page whatsoever provided in any form to my Swedish coascii117nsel – even in Swedish. This is a clear, clear abascii117se of process.'

Assange later described the rape allegations against him as 'a very sascii117ccessfascii117l smear campaign and a very wrong one'. Speaking on BBC 2 s Newsnight, he said information relating to accascii117sations had been leaked either by 'the Swedish prosecascii117tion service or some organisations that have obtained selective material'.

He said: 'My lawyers informed me this afternoon there will be another smear attempt relating to this investigation some time tomorrow.'

Speaking oascii117tside Ellingham Hall later, Assange said his lawyers in Sweden had got hold of 100 pages of material related to the allegations bascii117t he had yet to receive a comprehensive English translation.

He said there coascii117ld also be an attempt by the ascii85S to charge him with spying.

'We have heard today from one of my ascii85S lawyers, yet to be confirmed, bascii117t a serioascii117s matter, that there may be a ascii85S indictment for espionage for me, coming from a secret ascii85S grand jascii117ry investigation,' he told Sky TV.