Source: Time
“WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Tuesday that he was freed after years of incarceration because he ‘pled guilty to journalism.’ Assange gave evidence of the impact of his detention and conviction to the legal affairs and human rights committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France. The Parliamentary Assembly includes lawmakers from 46 European countries. Assange was released in June after five years in a British prison after he pleaded guilty to obtaining and publishing U.S. military secrets in a deal with Justice Department prosecutors that concluded a drawn-out legal saga. … ‘I am not free today because the system worked,’ Assange said in his first public remarks since he was released. ‘I am free today after years of incarceration because I pled guilty to journalism.'” (10/01/24)
https://time.com/7027118/wikileaks-assange-journalism-freedom/