Julian Assange, the Australian founder of Wikileaks, was arrested in London on Tuesday 7th December in relation to an extradition request from the Swedish government. Meanwhile, the Wikileaks bank account has been frozen because the Swiss bank which operates it says that Mr Assange claimed to live in Switzerland when he did not.
The 39-year-old from Townsville in Queensland is wanted by the Swedish government in connection with a sex act with two women, which allegedly became non-consensual after a condom broke or was removed by Assange. Some Australian supporters have said that the women texted friends afterwards “commenting favourably” on the experience. However, a court will have to decide on the substance of the issue.
It is far from clear that Wikileaks poses a serious threat to world diplomacy, largely releasing information which is already widely available. However, this latest twist could unearth serious intrigue as Assange could play his long-threatened trump card – releasing the full Wikileaks archive.