WikiLeaks Cancels 'October Surprise' Announcement Over Security Concerns
Founder Julian Assange still expected to give a speech on Tuesday morning to coincide with organization's 10-year anniversary
Last month, Assange promised that more emails from the DNC trove would be published soon. (Photo: World Cloud News/flickr/cc)
WikiLeaks has canceled an announcement set for this week, citing security concerns.
The organization's founder, Julian Assange was slated to make a statement on Tuesday that was widely expected to regard Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. MSNBC's Jesse Rodriguez tweeted on Friday, "Due to security concerns at the Ecuadorian Embassy, Julian Assange's balcony announcement on Tues has been cancelled, per @wikileaks."
Due to security concerns at the Ecuadorian Embassy, Julian Assange's balcony announcement on Tues has been cancelled, per @wikileaks
— Jesse Rodriguez (@JesseRodriguez) September 30, 2016
The cancellation of the so-called "October Surprise" comes after months of activity for WikiLeaks, which spent the summer releasing caches of about 20,000 private emails from Democratic National Committee (DNC) accounts, which showed the committee planning how to sabotage Clinton's then-opponent, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). The revelations led to the ouster of establishment DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Last month, Assange promised that more emails from the DNC trove would be published soon. He is still expected to give a speech on Tuesday morning via video link at a press conference in Berlin, to coincide with WikiLeaks' 10th anniversary.
Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012, fearing extradition to the U.S.