Metro Plus News Australian leaders celebrate Julian Assange’s freedom

Australian leaders celebrate Julian Assange’s freedom

Julian Assange spent his first night in 14 years as a free man back at home in Australia as the conservative opposition on Thursday cautioned the government against hailing the WikiLeaks founder as a hero.
Assange landed in Australia to an ecstatic welcome on Wednesday evening after pleading guilty to violating the U.S. Espionage Act and being freed by a U.S. court on the remote Pacific island of Saipan, having served more than five years in a British high-security jail.
His wife, Stella Assange, said it was too soon to say what her husband would do next and requested privacy for him.
Assange has not spoken publicly since being released.
His wife repeated calls for a presidential pardon for Assange. Overnight a judge in the U.S. state of Virginia formally dismissed all charges outstanding against him.