CANBERRA: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday rejected calls for him to publicly demand the United States drop its prosecution of WikiLeaks founder and Australian citizen Julian Assange.
The Australian government has been under mounting pressure to intervene since the British government last week ordered Assange’s extradition to the United States on spying charges. Assange’s supporters and lawyers say his actions were protected by the US Constitution.
Albanese, who came to power at elections a month ago, declined to say whether he had spoken to President Joe Biden about the case.
“There are some people who think that if you put things in capital letters on Twitter and put an exclamation mark, that somehow makes it more important. It doesn’t,” Albanese told reporters.
“I intend to lead a government that engages diplomatically and appropriately with our partners,” Albanese added.
Attorney General Mark Dreyfus and Foreign Minister Penny Wong responded to the British government’s decision by saying Assange’s “case has dragged on for too long and ... should be brought to a close.”
They said they would continue to express that view to the UK and US governments, but their joint statement fell short of calling for the United States to drop the case.
Assange supporters calling for Australian government intervention include his wife Stella Assange.
“The Australian government can and should be speaking to its closest ally to bring this matter to a close,” she told Australian Broadcasting Corp.
Bob Carr, who was foreign minister when Albanese’s center-left Labour Party was last in power in 2012 and 2013, wrote in an opinion piece in The Sydney Morning Herald on Monday that an Australian request to drop Assange’s prosecution was “small change” in Australia’s defense alliance with the United States.
American prosecutors say Assange helped US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning steal classified diplomatic cables and military files that WikiLeaks later published, putting lives at risk.
Carr noted that Manning’s sentence was commuted in 2017.
“It looks like one rule for Americans, another for citizens of its ally,” Carr wrote.
Carr told AuBC that Assange going on trial in the United States would “ignite anti-Americanism in Australia in a way we haven’t seen.”
He said hostility to the Australian-American alliance wasn’t “in the interests of either country.”
Assange’s lawyers plan to appeal, extending the process by months or even years.
His wife Stella Assange said her husband was being prosecuted for exposing war crimes and abuses of power.
“The only goal here is to free Julian because this has been going on since 2010. He’s been in prison for over three years and the case against him is a travesty,” Stella Assange said.
Australian leader refuses to publicly intervene on WikiLeak’s Julian Assange
https://arab.news/9mwvp
Australian leader refuses to publicly intervene on WikiLeak’s Julian Assange
- Australian government has been under mounting pressure to intervene since the British government last week ordered Assange’s extradition to the US on spying charges
Shahid, Disney+ and OSN+ launch exclusive streaming bundle across GCC
- Bundle available exclusively visa Shahid for $25 a month
RIYADH: In a landmark regional collaboration, Shahid, Disney+, and OSN+ have announced an exclusive streaming bundle that brings together world-class hits from the three platforms under a single subscription in a first-of-its-kind offer for audiences in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
The all-in-one entertainment package, available only through Shahid in the GCC for about $25 a month, grants subscribers full access to three leading platforms covering Hollywood blockbusters, Disney+’s expansive range of beloved films, animations and series, OSN+’s library of HBO originals and international hits, and Shahid’s Arabic premium content.
The bundle is designed to simplify subscription management with a unified payment model, allowing viewers to access all three apps at the price of two and offering a streamlined user experience.
Natasha Matos-Hemingway, chief commercial and marketing officer at Shahid, said the partnership reflects a broader effort to expand digital entertainment offerings in the Middle East, catering to a growing audience seeking diversity, convenience and high-quality programming.
“We are proud to collaborate with OSN+ and Disney+ to offer an unmatched streaming experience to our subscribers,” she said. “With one subscription, one payment, and full access to premium content from all three platforms, we’re delivering unbeatable convenience, value and entertainment.”
With a growing demand for high-quality on-demand content, the bundle is expected to attract a wide range of users seeking comprehensive entertainment without juggling multiple subscriptions.
The move also signals increasing cooperation between global media giants and regional platforms, in a bid to meet the entertainment preferences of Arab audiences while expanding market reach.
Karl Holmes, SVP and general manager at Disney+ EMEA, said the collaboration will bring award-winning series like FX’s “Shogun” and favorites such as “Lilo & Stitch” into a unique bundle with Shahid’s regional hits including “Al Dariya.”
The agreement “reflects a shared ambition between Disney+ and Shahid to shape the future of entertainment in the Middle East,” said Holmes. “The Middle East is young, dynamic and fast-growing, and we’re delighted to give consumers a new and easy way to access extraordinary content at exceptional value.”
Choucri Khairallah, chief business officer at OSN+, said the partnership takes OSN+’s entertainment experience “to the next level.”
He added: “Today’s audiences expect more than great content; they seek seamless access, variety and exceptional value. This all-in-one bundle delivers exactly that.”
