Australian lawmakers head to US to lobby against efforts to extradite WikiLeaks founder Assange

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A group of Australian lawmakers say they will travel to Washington this month to lobby the United States to abandon its efforts to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. The delegation includes former Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce and lawmakers from across the political spectrum. Their trip is timed to draw attention to Assange’s circumstances ahead of a planned visit to the White House in late October by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Assange, an Australian citizen, has spent the past four years in Britain’s Belmarsh Prison fighting extradition to the U.S. He has been charged with espionage for publishing classified military and diplomatic cables through WikiLeaks.