Wikileaks, the whistle-blowing platform, has announced the suspension of its publication of classified documents.
Instead, Wikileaks will concentrate on fundraising efforts to secure its future.
This announcement followed what the organization termed a blockade by financial companies in the United States.
The blockade came after the group released a substantial number of confidential US government documents and diplomatic correspondence online.
Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, stated that since December of the previous year, an “arbitrary and unlawful financial blockade” has been enacted by companies such as Bank of America, Visa, MasterCard, PayPal, and Western Union. He remarked, “The attack has destroyed 95% of our revenue.”
The former computer hacker indicated that the organization has suffered “tens of millions of dollars in lost donations at a time of unprecedented operational costs.”
Mr. Assange emphasized that “a handful of US finance companies cannot be allowed to dictate how the entire world votes with its wallet.”
He expressed the necessity for Wikileaks to “aggressively fundraise in order to combat this blockade and its supporters.”
In response to the blockade, the group is pursuing pre-litigation actions in locations including Iceland, Denmark, the UK, Brussels, the United States, and Australia, and it has filed an anti-trust complaint with the European Commission.
According to Kristinn Hrafnsson, a spokesman for Wikileaks, the website will resume accepting confidential document submissions on 28 November.
Meanwhile, Mr. Assange remains in Britain, awaiting a High Court decision regarding his appeal against extradition to Sweden, where he faces charges of sexual assault.
After July’s hearing, the judges did not specify when they would announce their decision on Mr. Assange’s attempt to reverse a ruling made in February.
He is concerned that extradition to Sweden could lead to his transfer to the United States, where he faces additional charges related to Wikileaks, with the possibility of a death penalty sentence.
Having secured bail in December, the Australian has been residing at Ellingham Hall, a ten-bedroom farmhouse in Norfolk owned by Vaughan Smith, who directs the Frontline media club.
His bail conditions stipulate that he must wear an electronic tag and report daily to a local police station.
Mr. Assange asserts that the allegations against him are “without basis.”
