A UN panel has ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange was under a three-and-a-half years “arbitrary detention” while holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy. Julian Assange sought sanctuary in the Ecuadorian embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden on sex charges which he vehemently denies. The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention will announce its findings of the investigation into Assange’s “arbitrary detention” on Friday after the Wikileaks founder filed a complaint in 2014. The London Metropolitan Police could arrest the journalist if he leaves the embassy. The Guardian reports: The WikiLeaks founder sought asylum from Ecuador in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden to face questioning over rape and sexual assault allegations, which he denies. The panel’s findings were disclosed to the Swedish and British governments on 22 January, and will be published on Friday morning. Their judgment is not legally binding but can be used to apply pressure on states in human rights cases. Assange’s Swedish lawyer, Per Samuelson, said if the working group found in his favour, “there is only one solution for Marianne Ny [the Swedish prosecutor seeking Assange’s extradition], and that is to immediately release him and drop the case”. Samuelson added: “If he is regarded as detained, [...]