Julian Assange in pictures: From pre-WikiLeaks to plea deal
For so long, the same pictures of Julian Assange showed up again and again as he remained mostly out of the public eye.
First in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London and then in the city's Belmarsh Prison, the WikiLeaks founder was rarely captured by a camera lens.
His release was almost the opposite, a flurry of media attention capturing his every move from England, to Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, and finally home to Australia.
July 22, 2024
Almost a month after returning to Australia a free man, Julian Assange was pictured relaxing with his family on the beach.
The picture, shared by wife Stella Assange on social media with the caption "family photo", wouldn't have been possible even a month earlier, or at any other time in their children's lives.
June 26, 2024
After more than 12 years confined in the Ecuadorian embassy and Belmarsh Prison in London, Assange finally touched down in Canberra a free man.
He raised his hands on the tarmac after he emerged from the plane at RAAF air base Fairbairn in Canberra and his supporters cheered from a distance.
He embraced his wife and his father, John Shipton, who were waiting on the tarmac.
Mrs Assange said she was "overcome by emotion" in that moment and that her husband would need time to recover before speaking publicly.
She said her husband's freedom wouldn't be possible without broad support from Australians and across the political spectrum.
June 25, 2024
Julian Assange has walked free from prison after a years-long case that saw him ultimately agree to a plea deal and plead guilty to a felony offence in the US in exchange for avoiding a jail sentence.
This image from a video posted by his wife Stella to X shows Assange today, before his flight to the Northern Mariana Islands.
Assange, now 52, has been a global public figure since 2010, when a warrant issued for his arrest sparked a series of refuges, court cases, protests and prosecutions.
May 6, 1995
Prior to founding WIkileaks, Assange was involved in the hacking community in Australia in the 1990s.
He is pictured attending court in 1995 on hacking accusations.
Assange would be convicted for hacking in 1996.
August 14, 2010
Assange in Stockholm in 2010.
The year was a pivotal one for the Wikileaks editor, when the site published a series of leaks from US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning.
Later that year, in November, Sweden issued a European arrest warrant for Assange in an alleged rape investigation, which would later be dropped.
December 16, 2010
Assange was arrested in the UK on the Swedish warrant and bailed as he battled the extradition order.
February 7, 2011
He breached his bail when he lost his appeal, fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy.
December 20, 2012
Granted asylum at the embassy of Ecuador in London, Assange would remain in residence there for a number of years, though he stayed as politically active as possible.
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