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Julian Assange wins right to pursue extradition fight Julian Assange wins right to pursue extradition fight
(40 minutes later)
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has won the right to petition the UK Supreme Court in his fight against extradition to Sweden.Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has won the right to petition the UK Supreme Court in his fight against extradition to Sweden.
He lost a High Court battle last month to be extradited over alleged sex offences, which he denies.He lost a High Court battle last month to be extradited over alleged sex offences, which he denies.
Judges refused Mr Assange permission to appeal directly to the Supreme Court - but said his case raised "a question of general public importance".Judges refused Mr Assange permission to appeal directly to the Supreme Court - but said his case raised "a question of general public importance".
He can now directly ask the Supreme Court to look at his case.He can now directly ask the Supreme Court to look at his case.
However, he still has no automatic right to be heard by the highest court in the UK. However, Mr Assange, who was at the London court to hear the judges' ruling, still has no automatic right to be heard by the highest court in the UK.
Mr Assange was at the London court for the ruling. 'Politically motivated'
Mr Assange, 40, is founder of the whistleblowing website Wikileaks, which has angered the United States by releasing hundreds of thousands of classified US documents.
The Australian faces extradition over accusations he raped a woman and sexually molested another in Stockholm in August last year. He denies the allegations.
Mr Assange was arrested in London a year ago on a European Arrest Warrant and has been living at the country estate of a supporter under stringent bail conditions.
He claims his arrest was politically motivated and linked to the activities of Wikileaks.
District Judge Howard Riddle ruled in February that Mr Assange should be extradited to face investigation following a hearing at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court in central London.
'Unfair and unlawful'
The decision was upheld by the High Court on 2 November after judges rejected claims that extraditing Mr Assange would be "unfair and unlawful".
Following the hearing he said: "I have not been charged with any crime in any country.
"The European Arrest Warrant is so restrictive that it prevents UK courts from considering the facts of a case."
Mr Assange attempted to appeal to the Supreme Court on two grounds.
He had argued the highest court should consider whether his extradition would be unlawful because the request was made by a "partisan prosecutor working for the executive" and whether he could be defined as "the accused" even though no decision has been taken to prosecute him.