Julian Assange cancels planned 'special announcement'

The WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has cancelled at short notice a press conference at which he had promised a "special announcement".

Journalists and supporters had gathered under a balcony at the Ecuadorian embassy in central London, from where Assange usually conducts press conferences. The press conference was to coincide with the fifth anniversary of Assange taking refuge in the embassy. Although the Swedish authorities have dropped an investigation into sex-related allegations, there is an arrest warrant out for Assange in the UK accusing him of jumping bail. Assange hinted in an interview with the Press Association before the press conference was cancelled that an end to the standoff with the UK authorities might be in the offing.

Assange has repeatedly expressed fears that his arrest in the UK would see him extradited to the US, where he could be charged with espionage offences. Without the UK arrest warrant, Assange would be free to fly to Ecuador, which has offered him asylum.