Julian Assange to face US extradition hearing

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Friday faces his first British court hearing since the US submitted a formal extradition request on espionage charges that have upset defenders of press freedoms and human rights.

Assange is expected to appear at hearing in a London court via video link as he continues his fight against extradition to the United States.

The 47-year-old Australian is currently serving a 50-week prison sentence for violating bail conditions in 2012 when he was wanted on accusations of sexual assault in Sweden.

The hacker was sensationally dragged out shouting from the Ecuadoran embassy in London by British police in April after Quito terminated his seven-year asylum stay.

He was too ill to appear at a recent hearing but is expected Friday to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court via video link.

U.S. officials have made clear their intention to prosecute Assange under the Espionage Act, blaming him for directing WikiLeaks’ publication of a huge trove of secret documents that disclosed the names of people who provided confidential information to American and coalition forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Assange asserts that he is a journalist with First Amendment protections.