Assange threatens more releases

Hasan Suroor

LONDON: A day after U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden called him a “high-tech terrorist” , WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Tuesday hit back likening his “persecution” to that suffered by American Jews in the 1950s and threatening to release damaging information about one of America's biggest banks, thought to be Bank of America.

Mr. Assange also criticised The Guardian, which has worked with him in releasing the WikiLeaks documents, for publishing hitherto unseen details of allegations of sexual assault made against him by two Swedish women. He is fighting extradition to Sweden to answer the charges.

“The leak was clearly designed to undermine my bail application. Someone in authority clearly intended to keep Julian in prison,” he said.

The Guardian said he was repeatedly asked for a response before the story was published. “His lawyers promised a full response by Friday, four p.m. They did not come through with a response, but we included a statement and other rebuttals Julian had made to the police,” said a spokesman for Guardian and News Media.

The spokesman added that the argument that papers involved with WikiLeaks cables should not report any criticism of him was “ridiculous”.

Speaking to the BBC separately, Mr. Assange said he was fighting extradition because he did not expect “natural justice” in Sweden.