Julian Assange suffered stroke during October appeal hearing, fiancée claims

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Julian Assange faces possible extradition to US

Fox News senior foreign affairs correspondent Greg Palkot on a London court overturning an earlier ruling in the WikiLeaks founder's espionage case

Julian Assange suffered a stroke during his court appeal in October, according to his fiancée.

Stella Morris, Assange’s partner and mother of his children, posted the claim on social media Saturday. She did not provide any update on his condition following the stroke. 

CAPTION CORRECTION SURNAME Julian Assange's partner, Stella Moris, addresses protestors outside the High Court in London, Wednesday, Oct. 27, 2021. The U.S. government is scheduled to ask Britain's High Court to overturn a judge's decision that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange should not be sent to the United States to face espionage charges. A lower court judge refused extradition in January on health grounds, saying Assange was likely to kill himself if held under harsh U.S. prison conditions. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein) (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

During the Oct. 27 hearing, Assange appeared several times over the five-hour session. He appeared disheveled, wearing an untucked shirt and baggy trousers, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. 

She once again urged authorities to release Assange from prison at a time when a British judge overruled a previous ruling that protected Assange from US extradition over concerns he might take his own life. 

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange arrives at the Westminster Magistrates Court, after he was arrested  in London, Britain April 11, 2019. REUTERS/Hannah McKay     TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC1D3D4D3CC0

An attorney for the U.S. government who appealed the decision denied that Assange’s mental health was too fragile to withstand the U.S. judicial system and even assured the court that any sentence handed down could be carried out in an Australian prison.

An appeal is almost certain in a case that has attracted international attention. Assange’s detractors see him as a traitor over his WikiLeaks’ publication of thousands of leaked military and diplomatic documents a decade ago. His supporters see his imprisonment as an affront against the free press.

Morris also framed the issue as one that "goes to the fundamentals of press freedom and democracy." 

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"This is an abusive, vindictive prosecution," she said to the press Sunday. She also said in the immediate aftermath of the new ruling that Assange’s legal team would appeal the decision "at the earliest possible moment." 

Fox News’ Edmund DeMarche contributed to this report.