Assange’s mother says asylum is only safe option

The mother of Julian Assange, visiting Ecuador to plea for her son’s asylum request, said the WikiLeaks founder is under extreme psychological stress and feels his only option is to seek safety in Ecuador.

Assange has been taking refuge in the Ecuadorean embassy in London since Jun 19. The former computer hacker, who enraged Washington in 2010 when his WikiLeaks website published secret US diplomatic cables, is wanted for questioning in Sweden over sex crime allegations.

Assange has broken his bail terms and requested asylum in Ecuador because he fears he could be bundled to the US where his life would be at risk.