Portrait of Julian Assange’s father, John Shipton, who has been tirelessly campaigning for the release of his son from custody as he awaits the outcome of his hearing into his extradition to the United States, where he faces a maximum sentence of 175 years for espionage, if convicted. He spent 7 years holed up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in an attempt to avoid extradition before being forcibly removed and arrested by British authorities.
Julian Assange has been the target of US and UK intelligence agencies since his WikiLeaks revealed evidence of torture and war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. Australia has only just announced an investigation into its possible war crimes in Afghanistan. The war in Afghanistan is Australia's longest, spanning 19 years and counting.
Assange is currently in lockdown in London’s Belmarsh prison, where an outbreak of COVID-19 was recently detected in his cell block.
Yesterday marked one year of regular protests at Sydney’s Town Hall, calling for the release of Assange. Around 50 protesters turned up to hear John Shipton urge for greater efforts for the release of his son.
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