WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange has released his full testimony to Swedish prosecutors for the first time, saying he is "entirely innocent" regarding sexual assault claims.
He has spent four years inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid arrest.
It is the first time he has gone public with his version of events surrounding the rape allegation.
His statement includes detailed accounts of what he calls “consensual and enjoyable” sex with a woman known as ‘SW’, which he says occurred four or five times.
Mr Assange says text messages between him and SW prove the sex was consensual.
The 45-year-old said: “I… could not believe my eyes when five days later I saw a headline in a Swedish tabloid that I was suspected of a crime and arrested in my absence.
"I immediately made myself available to Swedish authorities to clarify any questions that might exist, even though I had no obligation to do so.”
In his 19-page statement, Assange says he has been subjected to “six years of unlawful, politicised detention without charge.”
He says he has been subjected to “cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment” and denied effective legal representation in the process.
“I want people to know the truth about how abusive this process has been,” he said.
“Furthermore, in the past the prosecution has fed partial information to tabloids that politically oppose me.
“It is better that my statement, which I am happy with, and which makes it obvious to all that I am innocent, sees the light in full.”
More follows
