LONDON - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Monday won a victory in his battle against extradition from the United Kingdom (UK) to the United States after the High Court in London granted him permission to appeal.

Assange had been granted permission to appeal only if the US government was unable to provide the court with suitable assurances that Assange is permitted to rely on the first amendment (free speech) and is not prejudiced at trial.

The latest move came after the High Court deferred a decision in March on whether Assange could take his case to another appeal hearing

The US government also had to provide assurance that Assange would not be sentenced to death if convicted.

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The latest move came after the High Court deferred a decision in March on whether Assange could take his case to another appeal hearing.

Assange, 52, is wanted by the United States on allegations of disclosing national defense information following WikiLeaks's publication of hundreds of thousands of leaked military documents relating to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars a decade ago, which included a helicopter video footage documenting the US military gunning down journalists and children in Baghdad's streets in 2007.

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He has been held at southeast London's high-security Belmarsh Prison. Britain approved his extradition to the United States in 2022 under then Home Secretary Priti Patel after a judge initially blocked it on Assange's mental health concerns. Assange and his lawyers have appealed since then.