Julian Assange in Strasbourg.

The article focuses on Julian Assange's address to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on October 1, 2024, where he detailed his prolonged confinement, legal struggles, and the broader issue of "transnational repression." Assange described how U.S. government actions, particularly under CIA Director Mike Pompeo and Attorney General William Barr, targeted him and his associates through extrajudicial measures, including plans for kidnapping and assassination, as retaliation for WikiLeaks' publication of classified information exposing war crimes and surveillance programs. He emphasized the dangerous precedent set by the U.S. asserting that only its citizens have free speech rights under the Espionage Act, threatening journalists and publishers in Europe and undermining freedom of expression. Assange called on institutions like PACE to strengthen safeguards against such abuses to protect investigative journalism and fundamental liberties.