Nobody should be in prison

Given the real possibility of his extradition within days to face espionage charges in the United States, Monday’s high court decision granting Julian Assange leave to appeal was a last-ditch victory for good sense. Mr Assange and his lawyers now have some months of breathing space, during which the search for a political resolution to his case can continue. Fourteen years into this protracted saga, that would be by far the most desirable outcome.

Handing Mr Assange a legal lifeline, the high court rightly judged US assurances that Mr Assange could “seek” to rely in court on first amendment protections to be less than a guarantee. Its decision, though related to Mr Assange’s status as a non-US national, underlined the broader risks of pursuing a trial on the basis of charges put together by Donald Trump’s justice department in 2019.As this newspaper has consistently argued, the extradition and trial of Mr Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, would send a chilling message to journalists working across the world. Shared with the Guardian and other established media organisations, the WikiLeaks revelations relating to US policy and actions during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars exposed horrifying abuses, including torture and the killing of civilians.

The public had a right to know. But prosecution under the 1917 Espionage Act allows no public interest defence. Using it to prosecute Mr Assange for publishing material leaked to him by the former US soldier Chelsea Manning would in effect criminalise the normal practice of investigative journalists covering national security matters. Putting information out there, which has been provided by government insiders and other sources, is what such journalists do. It is what allows the media to function as a meaningful check and balance in a democratic society.

This was acknowledged by Barack Obama, who opted against charging Mr Assange under the Espionage Act because of the potential threat to the freedom of the press. Mr Trump – who as president accused the media of being an “enemy of the American people” – took a different view, seizing the Assange case as an opportunity to set some authoritarian precedents. Ahead of an election in which Mr Trump has a good chance of winning a second term, the current president, Joe Biden, needs to find a way to dial things down.

Mr Assange has now languished in Belmarsh prison for more than five years – just two less than the seven years eventually served by Ms Manning in the US. Despite Monday’s good news, he still faces the threat of extradition and potential lifelong imprisonment. It is surely well past time to draw a line. Last month, Mr Biden said that he was mulling over a request by the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, to drop the push to prosecute. There has also been some American speculation regarding a possible plea deal, in which Mr Assange might admit to a lesser misdemeanour offence and be allowed to go free. The legal process grinds on. But the performative staging of a trial that will imperil crucial democratic freedoms should not be allowed to go ahead.