Julian Assange tests positive for Covid as wife reveals she is ‘worried for his health’
The worried wife of Julian Assange has revealed the WikiLeaks founder’s diagnosis in prison where he is locked in his cell 24-7.
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WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has tested positive for Covid and faces days of isolation in his prison cell, his wife has revealed.
Speaking to Press Association news agency, Stella Assange said she is concerned for her husband’s health which has deteriorated since he was sent to Belmarsh prison three years ago after being dragged out of the Ecuadorean embassy in London.
Assange, 51, is wanted by US authorities on 18 counts, including a spying charge, relating to WikiLeaks’ release of confidential US military records and diplomatic cables.
Washington says he put lives in danger. His supporters say he has been victimised because he exposed US wrongdoing in conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
“Julian was feeling unwell last week but started feeling sick on Friday,” Mrs Assange said.
“He started coughing and had a fever. He was given some paracetamol. He tested positive for Covid on Saturday, the same day thousands of people came out onto the streets to support him.
“I am obviously worried about him and the next few days will be crucial for his general health. He is now locked in his cell for 24 hours a day.”
Just months before the pandemic, over 100 doctors signed an open letter to the British government warning that Assange’s life was at risk while he was kept in HMP Belmarsh — the UK’s top-security prison.
News of the Covid infection emerged over the weekend, as thousands of people staged demonstrations in London, Washington DC and Melbourne to demand Assange’s release from prison.
Mrs Assange, who has two sons with her husband, said she was overjoyed at the thousands of people who formed a human chain around parliament on Saturday.
Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was among supporters who gathered in a line which stretched from parliament's perimeter railings and snaked across nearby Westminster Bridge to the other side of the River Thames.
It was the biggest event of its kind in support of the WikiLeaks founder, who has won support from human rights organisations, journalist groups and others across the world.
The latest demonstrations come as US lawyers and journalists who visited Assange while he was at the Ecuadorean Embassy said they are suing the CIA, claiming it spied on their private conversations in violation of the Fourth Amendment.
Mrs Assange said the UK government should speak to authorities in the US to end the extradition bid which was launched in 2019.
“It’s already gone on for three-and-a-half years. It is a stain on the United Kingdom and is a stain on the Biden administration,” she said.
Assange’s legal team have lodged an appeal at the High Court against London’s decision to extradite him.
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