Thread: Julian Assange granted citizenship from Ecuador

Julian Assange granted citizenship from Ecuador

by Melissa Quinn | Jan 11, 2018, 1:02 PM
Ecuador's foreign minister said WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was granted citizenship from Ecuador last month. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, File)


WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been granted citizenship from Ecuador, according to reports.

Assange has been living at the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012 and was granted asylum from the country. Ecuador’s foreign minister, Maria Fernanda Espinosa, said Thursday that Assange was granted citizenship last month.

The WikiLeaks founder fled to the Ecuadorian embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden, which was investigating allegations of rape and sexual assault against him. Swedish authorities eventually dropped the charges, but he could still be arrested in the United Kingdom for violating bail conditions.

Espinosa announced Tuesday that Ecuador was looking for ways to resolve Assange’s asylum situation, which the foreign minister called “unsustainable.”

The head of Ecuadorian diplomacy said the nation will continue to protect Assange.

The Ecuadorian government requested diplomatic status for Assange from the United Kingdom, but the request was denied.

A spokesperson with the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London said, “Ecuador knows that the way to resolve this issue is for Julian Assange to leave the embassy to face justice.”
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/ju...rticle/2645636

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange 'poor hygiene' bothering Ecuador embassy staff

WIKILEAKS founder Julian Assange is at risk of being forced out of his hideaway at the Ecuador embassy in London over complaints about his body odour.

By Alexander Brown / Published 12th January 2018

Julian Assange granted Ecuadorian citizenship


He has been ordered to take more showers after staff raised objections to his “poor hygiene”.

Mr Assange has been holed up in the embassy since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden on rape charges.

He has now been granted Ecuadoran citizenship – but embassy insiders say some staff want him kicked out over his smell.

One source commented: “It seems that he does not wash properly.”

It is not the first time that Mr Assange’s hygiene has been an issue.

GETTY
GREASY: Staff said Assange might not change his clothes for daysGETTY

“It seems that he does not wash properly”
Embassy source

Former Wikileaks colleague Jérémie Zimmermann said after visiting him at the embassy that “he might not change his clothes for days”.

And another pal, Daniel Domscheit Berg, said: “Julian eats everything with his hands and he always wipes his fingers on his pants.

“I have never seen any pants as greasy as his in my whole life.”

Although rape charges in Sweden are now being dropped, Australian-born Mr Assange still faces arrest for skipping bail.

And authorities in the US have confirmed that arresting him is still a priority.

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/lat...embassy-london