STOCKHOLM/LONDON: Sweden said it did not agree with a UN panel which ruled on Friday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's stay in Ecuador's London embassy amounted to "unlawful detention".
"The government does not agree with the assessment made by the majority of the 'working group'," the foreign ministry said in a letter to the UN panel, adding that the body does not have the right to "interfere in an ongoing case handled by a Swedish public authority".
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Sweden wants him extradited over an allegation of rape, but the 44-year-old and his supporters believe this is a trick to have him extradited to the United States and tried for publishing government secrets.
Britain too rejected the UN panel's ruling on Friday that called for Julian Assange's "detention" at Ecuador's embassy in London to be brought to an end, saying it would challenge the report's findings.
"This changes nothing. We completely reject any claim that Julian Assange is a victim of arbitrary detention. The UK has already made clear to the UN that we will formally contest the working group's opinion," the government said in a statement.
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