INTERVENING

Ecuador: We Cut Off Assange’s Internet

After WikiLeaks founder’s attempts to affect the U.S. election.

The government of Ecuador said Tuesday that it chose to cut internet access for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange at their London embassy due to his attempts to affect the presidential election in the United States. “The government of Ecuador respects the principle of nonintervention in the internal affairs of other states. It does not interfere in external electoral processes, nor does it favor any particular candidate,” according to the statement. “This temporary restriction does not prevent the WikiLeaks organization from carrying out its journalistic activities.” Assange has been holed up for four years in the consulate, where he sought refuge from Swedish authorities seeking him for sex charges that he believes are a cover for U.S. efforts to extradite him for revealing top-secret government documents.