Demonstrators stand outside a court in London demanding the release of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Feb. 26, 2020. (Photo: Tim Ireland/Xinhua via Getty)
Dec 02, 2020
National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden on Thursday urged President Donald Trump to pardon WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
"You alone can save his life," Snowden tweeted.
\u201cMr. President, if you grant only one act of clemency during your time in office, please: free Julian Assange. You alone can save his life. @realDonaldTrump\u201d— Edward Snowden (@Edward Snowden) 1607030495
Assange, who exposed U.S. war crimes, has been jailed at Belmarsh Prison in London since April 2019 and faces possible extradition to the U.S. Facing 17 alleged violations of the U.S. Espionage Act and one for computer fraud, Assange could be hit with a sentence of up to 175 years.
His detention conditions and case have prompted international outrage from human rights and press freedom defenders.
Snowden's appeal to Trump came a week after Stella Moris, Assange's partner, tweeted an image of their two young sons and urged the U.S. president to grant Assange freedom.
"I beg you, please bring him home for Christmas @realDonaldTrump," Moris tweeted.
The plights of Assange and Snowden--who's lived in Russia since his 2013 explosive leak of documents revealing the U.S. government's massive surveillance operations--also drew attention this week from Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawii), who urged Trump to pardon both men.
In her tweet, Gabbard referenced Trump's pardon the day earlier to his former adviser Michael Flynn.
"Since you're giving pardons to people, please consider pardoning those who, at great personal sacrifice, exposed the deception and criminality of those in the deep state," she wrote.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden on Thursday urged President Donald Trump to pardon WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
"You alone can save his life," Snowden tweeted.
\u201cMr. President, if you grant only one act of clemency during your time in office, please: free Julian Assange. You alone can save his life. @realDonaldTrump\u201d— Edward Snowden (@Edward Snowden) 1607030495
Assange, who exposed U.S. war crimes, has been jailed at Belmarsh Prison in London since April 2019 and faces possible extradition to the U.S. Facing 17 alleged violations of the U.S. Espionage Act and one for computer fraud, Assange could be hit with a sentence of up to 175 years.
His detention conditions and case have prompted international outrage from human rights and press freedom defenders.
Snowden's appeal to Trump came a week after Stella Moris, Assange's partner, tweeted an image of their two young sons and urged the U.S. president to grant Assange freedom.
"I beg you, please bring him home for Christmas @realDonaldTrump," Moris tweeted.
The plights of Assange and Snowden--who's lived in Russia since his 2013 explosive leak of documents revealing the U.S. government's massive surveillance operations--also drew attention this week from Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawii), who urged Trump to pardon both men.
In her tweet, Gabbard referenced Trump's pardon the day earlier to his former adviser Michael Flynn.
"Since you're giving pardons to people, please consider pardoning those who, at great personal sacrifice, exposed the deception and criminality of those in the deep state," she wrote.
National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden on Thursday urged President Donald Trump to pardon WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
"You alone can save his life," Snowden tweeted.
\u201cMr. President, if you grant only one act of clemency during your time in office, please: free Julian Assange. You alone can save his life. @realDonaldTrump\u201d— Edward Snowden (@Edward Snowden) 1607030495
Assange, who exposed U.S. war crimes, has been jailed at Belmarsh Prison in London since April 2019 and faces possible extradition to the U.S. Facing 17 alleged violations of the U.S. Espionage Act and one for computer fraud, Assange could be hit with a sentence of up to 175 years.
His detention conditions and case have prompted international outrage from human rights and press freedom defenders.
Snowden's appeal to Trump came a week after Stella Moris, Assange's partner, tweeted an image of their two young sons and urged the U.S. president to grant Assange freedom.
"I beg you, please bring him home for Christmas @realDonaldTrump," Moris tweeted.
The plights of Assange and Snowden--who's lived in Russia since his 2013 explosive leak of documents revealing the U.S. government's massive surveillance operations--also drew attention this week from Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawii), who urged Trump to pardon both men.
In her tweet, Gabbard referenced Trump's pardon the day earlier to his former adviser Michael Flynn.
"Since you're giving pardons to people, please consider pardoning those who, at great personal sacrifice, exposed the deception and criminality of those in the deep state," she wrote.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.