Julian Assange extradition appeal ruling to come on Friday

Ruling on US government's appeal opposing a previous order against extradition of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is due to come on Friday.

Court listings for the Royal Courts of Justice in London published on Thursday said a judgment in the long-running case will be handed down at 1015 GMT on Friday.

USA wants to put 50-year-old Julian Assange on trial for leaking thousands of classified military documents about US war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The extradition was blocked in January this year. The grounds for blocking extradition were Assange potentially being a suicide risk if he was removed to the United States and held in isolation.

But lawyers for the US government in October argued the original judge had not given sufficient weight to other expert testimony about Assange's mental state.

They have also sought to assure the court he would not be held in a federal supermax prison, and would receive appropriate treatment.

The case has become a cause celebre for free speech with Assange's supporters arguing WikiLeaks has the same rights as other media to publish secret material in the public interest. 

Assange himself has been in custody since 2019, despite having served a previous sentence for breaching bail conditions in a separate case.

The maverick publisher spent seven years at Ecuador's embassy in London to avoid being removed to Sweden to face sexual assault allegations that were later dropped.

While at the South American country's mission, he fathered two children with his partner, Stella Moris, a member of his legal team.

(With inputs from agencies)