WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has landed in Australia as a free man following a years-long battle with the United States.
Assange, 52, was met by his father and wife at the airport, along with a small group of supporters who cheered his arrival.
His wife, Stella, told reporters during a press conference that her husband "remains principled and unafraid," according to the BBC.
Furthermore, she hopes the media "realize the danger of this US case against Julian, that criminalizes, that has secured his conviction for newsgathering and publishing information that was true, that the public deserved to know," and continues to hold hope for a presidential pardon in the U.S.
Assange was accused of receiving and publishing hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. documents.
In 2010, WikiLeaks posted video footage showing a U.S. military helicopter killing civilians in Iraq and documents that indicated that hundreds of civilians had been killed in Afghanistan incidents.
Assange signed a deal with the U.S. that would see him plead guilty to one charge rather than the 18 he was initially facing.
Fearing a long sentence, Assange had fought extradition to the U.S. from a UK prison for five years.
Supporters consider him a beacon of freedom of the press. Detractors say he has threatened U.S. security and put government workers across the globe at risk.
