By BBC

May 31, 2019 "Information Clearing House" -   Julian Assange has suffered "prolonged exposure to psychological torture", the UN's torture expert has said.

Nils Melzer urged Britain not to extradite the Wikileaks founder, warning that his human rights would be violated and that he is not fit to stand trial.

He also accused "several democratic states" of a "concerted effort to break [Assange's] will".

The UK government said it "disagreed with a number of his observations".

A justice ministry spokesperson said the UK did not participate in torture. Judges were independent of the government and anyone convicted had the right to appeal, the spokesman added.

Assange, 47, is fighting extradition to the US over charges related to leaking government secrets.

He sought political asylum in the Ecuadorean embassy in London in 2012, where he stayed until his arrest earlier this year.

Mr Melzer, who met Assange earlier in May, told the Washington Post that he was initially reluctant to get involved in the case, as he is not a fan of Wikileaks and considered its founder to be a bad actor.