WikiLeaks defies U.S. To help Edward Snowden

By Peter Griffiths

London, June 23 (Reuters) - the decision by WikiLeaks to American intelligence Edward Snowden contractor Washington extradition attempts escape in Hong Kong has cemented the reputation of the Group grouping as a thorn in the side of Governments, American and British.

In comments that infuriate Washington, WikiLeaks said escorting Snowden to Ecuador and offered the support of its legal director, Baltasar Garzón, a former Spanish judge known around the world for ordering the arrest of the former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet.

Ecuador, which is already home to the founder of WikiLeaks Julian Assange at their Embassy in London, confirmed that Snowden has sought political asylum, although Foreign Minister Ricardo Patiño said if the request had been accepted.

"The legal team of WikiLeaks and I are interested in the preservation of the rights of Mr. Snowden and protect it as a person", Garzon said in a statement. "What is being done to Mr. Snowden and Mr. Julian Assange - to make or facilitate information disclosure in the public interest--is an attack against the people."

Frustrating U.S. attempts to extradite Snowden and put it on trial for the unauthorized release of secret surveillance files, WikiLeaks also sent one of its team of lawyers to join him on a flight from Hong Kong to Moscow.

WikiLeaks said British legal researcher Sarah Harrison, one of Assange's closest advisers had "courageously assisted Mr. Snowden with their legal departure of Hong Kong and... on their way to security".

The campaign group gave no details about how he had helped to organize the escape of one of the most wanted men in the United States.

Council came from Garzon, an activist of the human rights of high profile who investigated cases of corruption in Spain and opened an investigation into alleged crimes under the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco, who died in 1975 right.

Since I started the Bank of Spain last year - when the Court found him guilty of illegal wiretapping in a case of political corruption - has spent most of his time outside Spain, advice on international law.

Garzon, who helped broker Assange asylum in the Embassy of Ecuador London, was the merchant with Ecuador in the case of Snowden, a source close to the legal team of WikiLeaks told Reuters.

Another prominent figure legal has represented to Julian Assange, the London lawyer Geoffrey Robertson, it was not directly involved in the case of Snowden, added the source.

SECRET FILES

Before helping the contractor of the Agency of the former spy, who leaked documents to a British newspaper national security agency - WikiLeaks was best known for the publication of secret documents, instead of giving direct support to them to escape them.

Assange has been in the Embassy of Ecuador in London since last June, trying to avoid his extradition to Sweden. It wants to question him about the allegations of sexual assault and rape, which he denies.

Secretary relations outside British William Hague held talks with his Ecuadorian counterpart Patiño last week in a failed attempt to find a breakthrough in a case that is becoming increasingly embarrassing for the Government in London.

Assange says he doesn't respond to the accusations in person because he believes that Sweden hand him over to US authorities, who would like to try for his role in the liberation of 700,000 secret documents of United States in one of the largest in American history leak.

In an interview with Reuters this month, Assange said he was encouraged by the actions of Snowden. "In the United States, the ideals that I have fought for for so long are now capture, being embodied in the extraordinary value of individuals such as Edward Snowden," said. (More information by Fiona Ortiz in Madrid and Mark Hosenball in Washington; Editing by David Stamp)

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