![]() Then, in 2017, WikiLeaks began Vault 7 and drew the ire of Trump administration officials. WikiLeaks gained national attention again after publishing emails hacked from Democrat Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign and a key adviser, which Clinton and some of her supporters say was a factor in her election defeat to Republican Donald Trump. Obama's Justice Department decided not to seek Assange's extradition on the grounds that what Assange and WikiLeaks did was too similar to journalistic activities protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. In 2012, Assange entered the Ecuadorian embassy in London and was granted political asylum.ĭebate over possible American moves to seek Assange's extradition from Britain first arose nearly a decade ago when Barack Obama served as president and Joe Biden was his vice president.įormer CIA director Mike Pompeo led the crusade against Assange, which intensified in 2017 when the US government heard Assange might attempt to escape Ecuador for Russia government computer with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. authorities alleged Assange engaged in a conspiracy to hack a classified U.S. government in 2010 after publishing thousands of pages of once-secret reports and documents generated by American military and intelligence agencies, including detailed descriptions of CIA hacking capabilities. The CIA's war against Assange was concurrent to the Justice Department's debate over extraditing Assange from London to the US for prosecution. officials allegedly even asked their British counterparts to aide in the mission by carrying out the shooting.Ī former senior administration official told Yahoo News that the British agreed with the plan. They included possible shootouts on the streets of London, crashing a car into a vehicle transporting him, or shooting out the tires of a plane taking him to Russia. In 2012, Assange sought asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London and was pictured above addressing the press in 2017Īmong the proposals reportedly suggested by agency officials are scenarios that appear to be straight out of a James Bond movie. ![]() He is currently detained in Belmarsh prison while he fights extradition to the US on espionage charges. ![]() One proposal allegedly involved shooting out the tires of his plane if Assange attempted to flee to Russia from London.Īssange had his asylum at the embassy revoked in April 2019, and was arrested by British police. Pompeo's plans intensified that year when the US government heard Assange might attempt to escape Ecuador for Russia, prompting the CIA to plan a number of scenarios for intercepting him. The claims were made in a newly released Yahoo News investigation that included interviews with 30 former US officials.įormer CIA director Mike Pompeo allegedly led the crusade against Assange in 2017 when WikiLeaks continued publishing classified government documents under the name 'Vault 7.' The publication of the tools by Wikileaks in 2016 was considered the 'largest data loss in CIA history', and senior agency officials reportedly requested 'sketches' and 'options' on how to kidnap or assassinate Assange in response. Published: 23:24 BST, 26 September 2021 | Updated: 23:27 BST, 26 September 2021ĬIA officials under the Trump administration allegedly made secret plans to kidnap or even assassinate Wikileaks founder Julian Assange after the website published sensitive agency hacking tools online, according to a report on Sunday. request to extradite him on charges of violating the Espionage Act
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