UK court delays WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's extradition to US on espionage charges

A UK court on Tuesday ruled WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange cannot immediately be extradited to the United States on espionage charges.

The U.K. court specifically requested that officials in the U.S. make sure Assange be "permitted to rely on the First Amendment to the United States Constitution (which protects free speech), that he is not prejudiced at trial (including sentence) by reason of his nationality, that he is afforded the same First Amendment protections as a United States citizen and that the death penalty is not imposed," according to CBS News. 

The court also made clear that if the U.S. did not agree to those conditions in three weeks, Assange could file a new appeal with further hearings. 

There will be a hearing on May 20 to determine if the assurances were met, according to CNBC News. 

The U.S. charged Assange in 2010 after WikiLeaks published thousands of secret government documents, and he has been fighting extradition for more than a decade, with much of that spent living in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.