Europe

WikiLeaks: Assange is target of ‘extensive spy operation’ in Ecuadorean embassy

WikiLeaks said its founder, Julian Assange, has been subject to an “extensive spying operation.”

“WikiLeaks has uncovered an extensive spying operation against Julian Assange within the Ecuadorean Embassy,” Kristinn Hrafnsson, WikiLeaks editor-in-chief, said at a press conference the site posted on Twitter Wednesday. 

“What we have established is that security cameras were used to monitor his every move, his every meeting,” he added. Hrafnsson called the alleged surveillance a “Truman Show situation,” referencing the 1998 film. 

Last week WikiLeaks tweeted that Assange could be expelled from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he has had been since 2012. 

The organization said Thursday that Assange would be removed from the embassy in “hours to days.” The Ecuadorian government on Friday denied the allegation, calling it “an attempt to stain the dignity of the country,” according to a translation. 

Assange in 2016 published hacked emails from the-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee. He has defended his actions, saying he was acting as a journalist.