Julian Assange profile: Publicity-hungry or a campaigner for the truth?

Published on 17/08/2012 00:00

Julian Assange divides opinion. There are those who believe he is a publicity-seeker who has endangered lives by putting a mass of sensitive information into the public domain. His supporters see him as a campaigner for the truth.

He set up Wikileaks, which publishes confidential documents and images, in 2006. It made headlines around the world in April 2010 when it released footage showing US soldiers shooting dead 18 civilians from a helicopter in Iraq.

But, later that year, he was detained in the UK after Sweden issued an arrest warrant over allegations of sexual assault. He spent the following months fighting extradition while under house arrest in England. In late May 2012, however, Britain’s Supreme Court ruled he should be extradited to Sweden to face the charges.

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