Relentless lobbying and a garden party ambush: how Australia pushed for Julian Assange's freedom

Standing outside a US court on the island of Saipan in the western Pacific Ocean, lawyer Jennifer Robinson hailed the "historic" plea deal to secure the freedom of fellow Australian citizen Julian Assange. After denouncing the case against the WikiLeaks founder as "the greatest threat to the first amendment in the 21st century", Robinson gave a shoutout to the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, "for his statesmanship, his principled leadership and his diplomacy". It was those outstanding qualities, she said, "which made this outcome possible". Shortly before Assange, 52, boarded a plane to be reunited with his family in Australia…