Sweden drops investigation against Wikileaks founder based in Ecuador's London embassy.
Sweden has dropped its investigation against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, prosecutors have announced.
The country's director of public prosecutions, Marianne Ny, said the preliminary rape and sexual assault probe has been discontinued.
WikiLeaks said an arrest warrant issued for Mr Assange would be revoked, sparking speculation he would be leaving the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.
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The Austrian activist sought asylum there in 2012 over fears the Swedish investigation would result in him being extradited to the US over leaked military documents and diplomatic cables.
" The UN called on Swedish and British authorities to free Mr Assange from arbitrary detention" in a report released last year, although the findings were not legally binding.
As the Swedish investigation continued in December 2010, Mr Assange was jailed in Wandsworth Prison in isolation for 10 days and then put under house arrest for 550 days under powers granted by an international arrest warrant.
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Scotland Yard stood down the 24/7 police presence outside the Ecuadorian Embassy building in 2015 but pledged to make “every effort” to arrest Mr Assange if he left.
The provision is likely to be removed with the lifting of Sweden's international arrest warrant.
It comes after Chelsea Manning, who provided WikiLeaks with classified intelligence on Iraq and Afghanistan that shocked the world, was freed from prison.
The transgender former US intelligence analyst left Fort Leavenworth on Wednesday, months after Barack Obama commuted her 35-year sentence as one of his final acts as President.
Source :-Indipendent