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[–] 15125702? 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

I don't know the charges - I just see his name on the indictment and know that he has been sitting in the Ecuadorian embassy because he is afraid to be extradited to the US. So I come back to the question - what right does the US have to charge, indict or extradite someone who is not a US citizen and has never committed a US crime on US soil.

And yes - I also view him as a journalist. So I don't even understand why Assange would ever be 'sentenced', never mind getting a commuted one. I'd just like to know under what law does the US have the right to extradite foreigners and sentence them?

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[–] 15136120? ago 

Seeing as he published data taken in a live battle theater, I would think he is charged at least as a co-conspirator. Probable military law takes over?

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[–] 15139840? ago 

So... if a Russian whistle blower sends you video of what Russian soldiers did in Afgahanistan during their war, and you showed it on youtube, would that mean that the Russians have the right to indict and extradite you to face their criminal justice system? Should we support them in their extradition request? What if it was an ally like Saudia Arabia? What if you published video from one of their whistle blowers about the war in Yemen? Should we support their extradition of you to face the Saudi justice system?

I'm just asking for some clarity here and trying to understand what laws are at play. If the US has the right to indict and extradite foreigners who supposedly break US laws while not on US soil, can other countries then indict and extradite Americans for having committed foreign government crimes while on US soil?

Be careful what you wish for. At some point in the future, the US might not have the biggest stick - in which case Americans might be open to prosecution (and persecution) by foreign governments. And those foreign governments will use examples such as Assange as their justification for seeking extradition. If I was an American - I would be fighting tooth and nail against my government from extraditing foreigners who committed no crimes on US soil.

As for military law - that only takes precedence when you are militarily occupying a country. So are you saying that the US are occupiers of Europe and therefore have the right to extradite based on military law?