Friend who hosted Assange 'pleased' at plea deal

A journalist who housed Julian Assange for 13 months said he was "really pleased" that the Wikileaks founder was a free man after agreeing a plea deal.

Mr Assange arrived home in Australia after 14 years fighting extradition to the United States.

Vaughan Smith offered Mr Assange refuge at Ellingham Hall, Norfolk, from December 2010 after the Australian journalist was released on bail following accusations of sexual assault and rape in Sweden.

Mr Smith said news of Mr Assange's plea deal with US authorities was "completely unexpected".

He said: "It needed to end; it’s been going on for 14 years.

"The whole thing was unsatisfactory for both sides. I’m really pleased he’s back, not least because he’s got two children who have never met him outside of prison.

"It’s good for him and his family."

Mr Assange's Wikileaks website published many confidential or restricted official reports related to war, spying and corruption.

It also published thousands of confidential documents supplied by former US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning.

These suggested that the US military had killed hundreds of civilians in unreported incidents during the war in Afghanistan.

The US said the leaks had endangered the lives of American personnel.

Efforts were made to bring Mr Assange to the US for prosecution, which he fought in some of the world's highest courts.

Mr Assange has always argued that he exposed serious abuses by US armed forces, and that the case against him was politically motivated.

Mr Smith said he met Mr Assange through a war correspondents' group he ran and that he "got to know him and like him".

He said he offered Mr Assange refuge at his home, near Bungay, after being contacted by his lawyers.

"I got to know him extremely well. He was very good with my children," said Mr Smith.

"There was so much propaganda against him. I knew the truth but most people didn't.

"A lot of people abandoned him and found it a bit too much.

"As he had less support, I thought it was more important that someone could stand up for him. It wasn’t comfortable, it was difficult. But I did so."

After leaving Ellingham Hall, Mr Assange spent seven years in a small office converted into a bedroom in Ecuador's embassy in central London.

His plea deal saw Mr Assange plead guilty to one charge of conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information, rather than the 18 he was originally facing.

Due to the time he had already served, he was released to fly home to Australia.

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