Assange to be ejected from Ecuadorean embassy

Julian Assange's asylum at the embassy of Ecuador in London could end soon, if the Latin American nation goes ahead with its reported bid to expel the controversial Wikileaks founder.

Assange was arrested by request of Swedish police who sought his extradition over alleged rape charges while in London, and was released on bail in December 2010.

He absconded and broke his bail conditions, and sought asylum at the Ecuadorean embassy in London.

He has been at the embassy ever since, refusing to leave the legation as he believed there is an active extradition request by the United States for criminal proceedings over Wikileaks' publication of leaked material by former US soldier Chelsea Manning.

Wikileaks cited an unnamed Ecuadorean state source saying Assange would be ejected from the embassy with short notice, and that British police would arrest him for breach of bail conditions.

BREAKING: A high level source within the Ecuadorian state has told @WikiLeaks that Julian Assange will be expelled within "hours to days" using the #INAPapers offshore scandal as a pretext--and that it already has an agreement with the UK for his arrest.https://t.co/adnJph79wq

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) April 4, 2019

The reason for Assange's asylum ending is the leak of documents that contained WhatsApp and Telegram as well as Gmail messages by Ecuador's president Lenin Moreno.

According to Assange's Wikileaks, the messages implicate Moreno in a corruption scandal.

Moreno is also said to have tried trade Assange's release for United States debt relief, Wikileaks said.

Sweden dropped the charges against Assange late 2017, and the Australian became and Ecuadorean citizen in December that year.

Assange is suspected by Western nations to have assisted Russia interfere in the 2016 US presidential election, during which time Wikileaks published emails by Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.