Assange Accuses Nobel Foundation of "Facilitating War Crimes"

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange filed a criminal complaint in Sweden yesterday against 30 individuals linked to the Nobel Foundation for "committing serious offenses," including gross misappropriation of funds, facilitation of war crimes and crimes against humanity, and financing the crime of aggression.

He further accused the organization of turning the peace prize into an "instrument of war," and singled out this year's laureate, Venezuelan opposition figure María Corina Machado, for allegedly inciting the United States government to escalate actions against her own country.

WikiLeaks reported that Assange emphasized in his complaint that Alfred Nobel's will (1895) dictates the peace prize shall be awarded to the person who, during the preceding year, has conferred "the greatest benefit to humankind" by doing "the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies, and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses."

The journalist argued that "any disbursement contradicting this mandate constitutes a misappropriation of the endowment," because "the political decision of the Norwegian selection committee does not suspend the fiduciary duty of the Swedish fund managers."

The accusation of the alleged crime of "gross misappropriation and conspiracy" relates to the pending disbursement of 11 million Swedish kronor (approximately 1.18 million US dollars) of the peace prize money to Machado, who was awarded the prize this year, and "whose prior and ongoing actions categorically exclude her from the criteria established in Alfred Nobel's will."

Regarding his complaint for "facilitation of war crimes," the journalist explained in the statement that "the accused are aware of Machado's incitement and endorsement of the commission of international crimes by the United States," and therefore "knew or should have known that the disbursement of Nobel money would contribute to extrajudicial executions of civilians and survivors of shipwrecks at sea."

"Alfred Nobel's endowment for peace cannot be used in the promotion of war," stated Assange, who believes the foundation has an obligation to "ensure compliance with the purpose set out in its founder's will, that is, to end wars and crimes in conflict, and not to facilitate them," he reiterated.

The journalist opined that "Machado has continued to incite the (President Donald) Trump administration to continue its path of escalation," in the context of the military deployment Washington has maintained in the Caribbean and Pacific since last August.

The complaint notes that the Nobel announcement and ceremony have occurred during what military analysts describe as "the largest US military deployment in the Caribbean since the Cuban Missile Crisis" – now exceeding 15,000 personnel, including the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford.

In it, Assange asserted that "there is a real risk that funds derived from the Nobel endowment have been or are being intentionally or negligently diverted from their charitable purpose to 'facilitate aggression, crimes against humanity and war crimes.'"

Given this possibility, the WikiLeaks founder requested that Swedish authorities "immediately" freeze the pending transfer of the monetary prize and secure "the return of the medal."

Assange regained his freedom on June 24, 2024, after pleading guilty to a felony in a deal with the US Department of Justice, concluding a legal saga that spanned several continents and centered on Washington's prosecution for the publication of hundreds of thousands of classified documents.

He spent 14 years confined between the Ecuadorian embassy in London and a British prison.