Julian Assange loses extradition appeal at Supreme Court

[Gerald]

Supreme Court: "The request for Mr Assange's extradition has been lawfully made and his appeal is accordingly dismissed"

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has lost his UK Supreme Court fight against extradition to Sweden to face accusations of sex offences.

Lord Phillips, the court's president, said a majority of five justices to two had ruled against Mr Assange.

The court ruled the extradition request had been "lawfully made".

However, Mr Assange has 14 days to challenge the ruling and his solicitor, Gareth Peirce, said his lawyers would be asking the court to reconsider.

Mr Assange, who has been on conditional bail in the UK, did not attend the hearing in central London. His lawyer later told reporters he had been "stuck in traffic".

Following the hearing, he tweeted: "We got the news not hoped for."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18260914

Note: 30 May 2012 Last updated at 13:16 GMT