WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been set free on bail.
He was released hours after a High Court judge ruled that he should be freed, and his lawyers accused the Swedish authorities of waging a “vendetta” against him.
The 39-year-old whistleblower is wanted in Sweden for alleged sex offences which he denies and is facing extradition proceedings in the new year.
After his release, he said: “It’s great to smell the fresh air of London again,” and he vowed to “continue my work and continue to protest my innocence”.
Earlier this week at City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court he was granted bail pending the bid to extradite him.
But the Australian remained in prison while the authorities challenged his release at the High Court in London, arguing that there was “a real risk” he would abscond.
At the High Court on Thursday, Mr Justice Ouseley rejected submissions that the risk he posed made it impossible to set him free.
The judge said his co-operation with police suggested he is not “a person who is seeking to evade justice”.
The judge accepted offers by Assange’s supporters to stump up £200,000 as a cash deposit and a number of other sureties.
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