France Rules Out Asylum for WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange

Julian Assange has sought refuge in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London for three years.

Published 3 July 2015

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France has said Julian Assange should submit a formal asylum request after appealing to President Hollande in an open letter.

France has denied asylum for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange Friday, after French Justice Minister Christiane Taubira hinted last week that it could be a possibility.

After WikiLeaks revealed last week that U.S. intelligence spied on current French President Francois Hollande and two other presidents between 2006 and 2012, the whistleblower appealed to Hollande for asylum in an open letter. The request was promptly denied.

Mr. President, give asylum to #Assange and #Snowden: Open letter to President Hollande from prominent French figures https://t.co/vbLaVd7Std
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) July 2, 2015

“My life is in danger,” Assange wrote in an open letter to Hollande and the French public published in Le Monde on Friday. “France is the only country that can offer me the necessary protection against … the political persecutions I face.”

Immediately following the publication of Assange's open letter, the president's office responded.

"France has received the letter from Mr. Assange,” the presidential statement said. “An in-depth review shows that in view of the legal and material elements of Mr Assange's situation, France cannot grant his request.”

Media note: Assange did not submit an asylum application to France. He published an open letter in Le Monde to Hollande and the public.
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) July 3, 2015

In a statement following the asylum denial, Assange's legal team clarified that he did not make a formal request for asylum.

“Julian Assange has merely reacted to statements by Chiristiane Taubira, minister of justice, and a call from civil society to welcome him in France, signed by over forty leading intellectuals and cultural figures,” legal advocates explained in a statement.

Assange's legal team also questioned the genuineness of France's “in-depth analysis,” given that the presidential statement was released within an hour of Assange's open letter.

Acknowledging Assange did not officially submit an asylum plea, France has suggested that Assange should submit a formal request for asylum.

France now admits #Assange has not asked for asylum https://t.co/1xCx9GWqGy pic.twitter.com/KdD56ci1fd
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) July 3, 2015

France now says #Assange should submit an asylum request pic.twitter.com/4tD3Yf4VU8
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) July 3, 2015

Assange has spent the past three years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid extradition to Sweden for questioning over alleged sexual assault. Assange denies the allegations, and fears that the charges are just a step toward Sweden extraditing him to the U.S, where he would face trial for WikiLeaks whistleblowing.

Assange shot into the public eye in 2010, when WikiLeaks published hundreds of thousands of U.S. military documents and diplomatic cables, leaking classified information that exposed the full extent of U.S. military abuses committed in its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.