Julian Assange will seek US pardon after accepting plea deal to go free

Julian Assange is flying back to Australia after a 12-year legal battle. Here’s what we know about his US plea deal.

Transcript

00:00Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, has finally concluded his 12-year legal battle

00:05against extradition to the United States.

00:10After being released from a British prison, he is now on his way back to his home country

00:15of Australia. Assange, a controversial figure, has spent the past five years in a high-security

00:21UK prison, and nearly seven years before that seeking refuge at the Ecuadorian embassy in

00:27London to avoid arrest. His alleged role in publishing nearly half a million secret military

00:33documents related to the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan led to a felony charge.

00:40On Monday, Assange, now 52, agreed to a plea deal that allows him to avoid prison in the US

00:48and return to Australia as a free man. However, he must first make a court appearance in a remote

00:54US territory in the Pacific. This plea deal marks the end of a long legal saga for Assange,

01:01who has faced numerous challenges and obstacles in his fight against extradition.

01:07His return to Australia will undoubtedly be a significant moment for him and his supporters.