Assange's refuge in Ecuadorian embassy 'in jeopardy'
London, May 25: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's nearly six-year refuge inside the Ecuadorian Embassy in London is "in jeopardy" as he faces possible arrest by British authorities and subsequent extradition to the US, a media report said.
Assange has in the past claimed his position in the embassy was under threat but his current situation is "unusually bad" and he could leave the embassy "any day now", informed sources told CNN on Thursday.
"He will be forced out or made to feel so restricted that he might choose to leave on his own," the sources said.
Earlier this year, the Ecuadorian government cut off Assange's access to the internet, making it virtually impossible for him to manage WikiLeaks.
He has also had his access to visitors severely restricted. Assange is now only allowed to see his lawyers, who said their phones are jammed while they are inside the embassy.
British authorities have said that they would issue a warrant for Assange's arrest if he were to leave the embassy, CNN reported.
He faces charges in the UK for breach of bail for failing to surrender for extradition to Sweden, despite the fact that Sweden stopped investigating an allegation of rape against Assange in 2017.
Swedish prosecutors however, maintain the right to resume the investigation if Assange leaves the embassy.
The US has prepared charges to seek the arrest of Assange, who US intelligence agencies believe Russia used as an intermediary to distribute hacked emails from Hillary Clinton's campaign during the 2016 presidential election.
Ecuador's President, Lenin Moreno, is under increasing pressure from the US to expel Assange.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Govt clears procurement of ammunition for Pinaka rocket systems
New Delhi (PTI): The government is learnt to have cleared a proposal to procure ammunition for Pinaka multi-launch rocket systems at a cost of Rs 10,200 crore, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi on January 13 said that two Pinaka contracts -- one for high explosive pre-fragmented ammunition and another for area denial munitions -- are set to be inked before end of the current fiscal.
The people cited above said the procurement has been given the required go ahead.
The two types of ammunition are being procured for around six Pinaka regiments that the Army plans to deploy to bolster its combat prowess along the northern frontier with China.
The Army already has four regiments of Pinaka rocket systems.
While the Pinaka MK-I rocket system has a range of around 40 km, the Pinaka II variant can hit targets at a distance of 60 km.
The Army is enhancing the combat prowess of its artillery units along the frontier with China by procuring an array of weapons systems including an additional batch of 100 K9 Vajra howitzers, swarm drones, loitering munitions and surveillance systems.
