Welcomed By Supporters, Julian Assange WikiLeaks Returns To Australia As A Free Person

JAKARTA - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returned to Australia, as a free person for the first time in 12 years, after a US judge signed an agreement after admitting his guilt.

Cheerfully emerged from supporters gathered at Canberra Airport in the Australian capital when Assange got off the plane. He waved to the crowd.

As he approached the airport terminal, his wife Stella appeared with a big smile on his face. Assange pulled him into a hug.

Earlier, Assange walked out of the courtroom in Saipan, in the North Mariana Islands, a remote area of the US in the Pacific, raising one hand at reporters before leaving in a car to the airport to continue his trip to Australia.

Speaking out of court, Assange's US attorney, Barry Pollack, said Assange was "deeply suffering in his struggle for freedom of expression and press freedom," reported by CNN, Wednesday, June 26.

"The prosecution of Julian Assange has never happened before in 100 years of the Espionage Act," Pollack told reporters.

"Assange mengungkapkan informasi yang benar dan layak diberitakan... Kami sangat yakin bahwa Assange seharusnya tidak pernah dituntutkan berdasarkan berdasarkan Undang-Undang Espionase dan terlibat dalam tindakan yang dilakukan jurnalis setiap hari.

The 52-year-old Australian was released from a high-security prison in London on Monday afternoon and had boarded a private jet to leave England before the world even learned of his agreement with the US.