General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Context and the Assange case. [View all]struggle4progress
(118,282 posts)at present
If the UK ever sends Assange to Sweden, and if the US obtains an indictment against him and seeks a forward extradition of him from Sweden, then (under European extradition law) both Sweden and the UK would be required to agree to the forward extradition in order for that to occur, and Assange would be able to fight the forward extradition in both Swedish and UK courts: in particular, under those circumstances, Assange would be free to argue, before the bench in both Sweden and the UK, the concern that you raise
Any credible argument, that extradition to the US would likely result in torture, would prevent both Sweden and the UK from agreeing to a forward extradition from Sweden
Assange was, of course, free to raise such issues during the court sessions in the UK, regarding extradition to Sweden, but chose not to do so, perhaps because one of his own witnesses told the magistrate at Belmarsh that forward extradition was a practical impossibility
And on the known facts, it is difficult to imagine a US charge against Assange that would not be regarded by the Swedish courts as political, since Swedish law prohibits extradition for political activities and since "espionage" (for example) is likely to be regarded internationally as a political activity