WikiLeaks Founder Assange Drops Appeal of U.K. Prison Sentence

(Bloomberg) -- WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange won’t challenge his 50-week prison sentence for skipping bail and hiding out in the Ecuadorian embassy in the U.K.

A court hearing for Assange to appeal the length of the jail term has been cancelled, a court official said. Assange faces separate U.S. charges that he endangered national security and his extradition hearing is scheduled for February.

Assange was arrested in April after taking refuge in the embassy in 2012. He is currently serving his sentence at Belmarsh prison for skipping bail and has been receiving medical treatment.

To contact the reporters on this story: Jonathan Browning in London at jbrowning9@bloomberg.net;Christopher Elser in London at celser@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Anthony Aarons at aaarons@bloomberg.net

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