Assange must be extradited, judge rules

LONDON - Britain will honor Sweden's request to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to face sex-crime allegations, a British judge ruled Thursday.

Speaking to a packed courtroom in southeast London, Judge Howard Riddle said Swedish prosecutors' request that Assange be forced to return to Stockholm was valid and dismissed arguments that extradition would violate the 39-year-old Australian's human rights.

"I must order that Mr. Assange be extradited to Sweden," Riddle said while Assange, who wore a dark suit and tie, looked on impassively from the witness dock.

Swedish authorities want to question Assange over allegations of sexual molestation, unlawful coercion and rape made last August by two Swedish women - claims that Assange vehemently denies.

One woman, known in court as Miss B, claims that Assange had unwanted, unprotected sex with her while she was asleep, an act considered rape in Sweden and punishable by up to four years in jail.

Assange, whose whistle-blowing Web site has released thousands of secret U.S. government cables, maintains that the allegations against him are politically motivated and that if sent to Sweden, he would risk extradition to the United States.

Assange's attorney, Geoffrey Robertson, told the court that his client would file an appeal as soon as possible.

Assange's legal team has seven days to lodge the appeal at London's High Court. Extradition experts say the case then could drag on for several months given the various routes for legal appeals.

Since his arrest Dec. 7, Assange has remained free on bail at the 600-acre country estate of Vaughn Smith, a British restaurateur. In light of Riddle's ruling, the court will now reassess Assange's bail conditions.

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