Levantate, Assange.

How is Julian Assange whiling away the hours while he's sequestered inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London?

Probably training monkeys to do his bidding and flambé-ing his way through the entire Julia Child cookbook. Possibly sunbathing.

Here's one thing he's definitely doing: collaborating with Puerto Rican Reggaeton-esque musical group Calle 13. Group member René Pérez Joglar, aka “Residente,” confirmed as much for Fox News Latino.

Calle 13, known for hits like "Atrevete Tete," will collaborate with Mr. Assange via Twitter and will also invite the public to join in, according to Fox. Their work will address "media manipulation, freedom of expression and social media empowerment," so it'll be just another club banger, really.

Mr. Assange will fit in perfectly with these guys.

Calle 13 and entourage. (Screengrab: YouTube)

(Illustration: Jose Mesa, flickr)

Julian Assange has filed documents that will allow the WikiLeaks founder to run for the Australian senate, clearing the way for a campaign dedicated to ''the democratic requirement of truthfulness from government, according to The Age.

Mr. Assange has been living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he is avoiding extradition to Sweden (and possibly the United States). If elected, and prevented from holding office by his legal predicament, Mr. Assange has indicated that he would cede his seat to another member of the WikiLeaks Party.

We wonder if it's possible to PayPal Mr. Assange a campaign contribution.

(Photo: Zap2It)

This should delight the Sherlock fangirls on Tumblr: Benedict Cumberbatch, who's currently shooting The Fifth Estate, in which he plays controversial Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, is reportedly in talks to take on his next awesomely nerdy role. Deadline reports that Mr. Cumberbatch may be gearing up to play Alan Turing in a biopic about the famous British mathematician's life.

Mr. Turing is a storied character in computer science history, having cracked a code during World War II that helped the Allies defeat Germany. He also invented the Turing Test, which helps gauge a computer's ability to behave indistinguishably from a human. In the '50s, Mr. Turing was prosecuted by the British government for being gay, choosing chemical castration over prison time, which eventually lead to his suicide. So: a real feel good movie!

With so many nerd-friendly roles already under his belt (including The Hobbit and Star Trek), we can only hope Mr. Cumberbatch will soon accept a role as Steve "Sweaty" Ballmer in the smash-hit musical comedy Developers!

(Publicity still via Cumberbatch Web)

It was really just a matter of time before Julian Assange's tumultuous life hit the silver screen. Well guess what: Filming commenced today on The Fifth Estate, Dreamworks' Wikileaks movie scheduled to appear in theaters November 15.

My goodness, you can already see the gleam of Oscar gold in their eyes. 

Leading up the cast as Mr. Assange is Benedict Cumberbatch who, of course, plays the titular character in the BBC's "Sherlock." (If you haven't seen it, you ought to knock off work and Netflix it right now; we'll cover for you.) You might also recognize his long face from Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy or the trailer for the upcoming Star Trek movie. Also appearing in the film: Daniel Brühl, Laura Linney, Anthony Mackie, and Dan Stevens, for some reason. (You bailed on Downton Abbey for this, you ungrateful bastard?)

A summary of the film, from the announcement earlier today:

Following Daniel Domscheit-Berg (Brühl), an early supporter and eventual colleague of Julian Assange (Cumberbatch), “The Fifth Estate” traces the heady, early days of WikiLeaks, culminating in the release of a series of controversial and history changing information leaks. The website’s overnight success brought instant fame to its principal architects and transformed the flow of information to news media and the world at large.

But among some of Mr. Cumberbatch's most devoted fans--i.e., obsessive "Sherlockians" on Tumblr--the publicity still above is causing mixed feelings. Sure, it's another chance to watch Mr. Cumberbatch work his cumbermagic, but look at that hair. YUCK.

(h/t Red Scharlach Points At Interesting Things)

(Jose Mesa.)

You might think that a person wanted for extradition by one or more countries would make a problematic political candidate—if not for the stigma that comes from being a wanted person, at least because it would presumably be difficult to turn out the vote from a remote location.

Unless, of course, you're Julian Assange. According to The Age, the WikiLeaks founder has confirmed his intention to mount a campaign for the Australian senate, despite his current confinement in Ecuador's London embassy, where he's spent the last six months avoiding extradition on to Sweden (from where it's generally presumed, the United States would seek to extradite him).

What's more, it sounds like he has a reasonable chance to win. According to The Age:

Opinion polls this year by UMR Research, the company the Labor Party uses for its internal polling, have suggested that Mr Assange could be a competitive Senate candidate in either NSW or Victoria, most likely fighting it out with the Australian Greens for the last of six seats up for grabs in each state in a half-Senate election.

(Photo: Free Assange)

Citing health concerns, Ecuador has asked the British government to guarantee medically related safe passage for  WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

Mr. Assange, who faces allegations he assaulted two women in Sweden in 2010, has been living inside Ecuador's London Embassy since June. British authorities have insisted they will arrest Mr. Assange should he leave the embassy, but Reuters reports that Albuja Martinez, Ecuador's vice foreign minister, seeks a formalized exception:

Ecuador has asked the British Foreign Office for a document that would enable Assange to enter hospital safely if necessary and return to the embassy with refugee status, the Voice of Russia quoted Albuja Martinez as saying.

Ecuador offered asylum to Mr. Assange in August. In public appearances at the time, he appeared fit and tan, but Ecuadorian officials are concerned that he has lost weight and now appears "very pale."

In addition to accusations he "sexually molested" two Swedish women, Mr. Assange may also face charges in the United States related to publishing leaked secret cables between U.S. diplomats two years ago.

Julian Assange

Documents released under the Freedom of Information Act have revealed that the United States considers WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange an enemy of the state. Soldiers who contact Mr. Assange or WikiLeaks could be charged with communicating with an enemy. Members of the military found guilty of such communication could be sentenced to death in a military court of law.

Technically, this status puts Mr. Assange and his site on the same legal footing as the Taliban.

As Australia's National Times reports, the government's view of the whistle-blowing organization and its founder was revealed in documents regarding an investigation into an Air Force officer's actions while stationed overseas:

The documents, some originally classified "Secret/NoForn" - not releasable to non-US nationals - record a probe by the air force's Office of Special Investigations into a cyber systems analyst based in Britain who allegedly expressed support for WikiLeaks and attended pro-Assange demonstrations in London.

The counter-intelligence investigation focused on whether the analyst, who had a top-secret security clearance and access to the US military's Secret Internet Protocol Router network, had disclosed classified or sensitive information to WikiLeaks supporters, described as an "anti-US and/or anti-military group".

The case was closed and no charges were filed, but the unnamed female analyst was cut off from further access to classified data.

The case documents are interesting reading, though they have been heavily redacted. The subject of the investigation was said to be "obsessed" with Julian Assange and sympathetic to PFC Bradley Manning, the soldier who is currently awaiting trial for allegations he gave classified diplomatic cables to WikiLeaks.

The Australian paper contacted Mr. Assange's American attorney, Michael Ratner, who said that based on his interpretation of the documents, "It appears that Julian Assange and WikiLeaks are the 'enemy'. An enemy is dealt with under the laws of war, which could include killing, capturing, detaining without trial, etc."

WikiLeaks addressed the investigation on a page published Wednesday, writing that an allegation "of 'Communicating with the Enemy' indicates the extremely serious threat Julian Assange and WikiLeaks face from the United States." The statement goes on to say:

Therefore the term "Communicating with the Enemy" would appear to show that the US government term Mr Assange and WikiLeaks the "enemy". By deeming them the "enemy" they can be treated under the laws of war which could include killing, capturing, detaining without trial etc.

Mr. Assange gave a video address to the United Nations Thursday, in which he talked about the Manning case and said that the "United States is not the enemy," but it is "time for the US to cease its persecution of WikiLeaks, to cease its persecution of our people, and to cease its persecution of our alleged sources."

Mr. Assange, who faces accusations he sexually molested two women in Sweden in 2010, remains holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

Julian Assange

Because the first thing you wondered upon waking was probably "what's up with those Swedish allegations against Julian Assange?" here you go: it looks like a condom used as evidence against the snowy-locked whistleblower didn't even contain his DNA. From The Register:

According to details that have emerged in a 100-page police report submitted after witnesses were interviewed and forensic evidence had been examined, the condom submitted for evidence by one of the key alleged sexual assault victims does not contain Assange’s DNA.

Assange’s legal team have alleged that the lack of conclusive DNA evidence suggests that fake evidence may have been submitted and is calling the entire process into question.

Mr. Assange, age 41, is holed up in the Ecuador's London Embassy after the South American state gave him asylum. If he even puts a toe outside a door frame there, a team of U.K. cops stand ready to put him on a plane to Sweden.

Questions regarding Mr. Assange's ill-fated trip to Sweden in 2010, which led to accusations he sexually molested two women, won't go away anytime soon. Multiple sources report his genetic material was found on a second condom.

Julian Assange continues to deny the claims, insisting his encounters with both women were consensual.

Screengrab

With an ill-advised tweet posted Wednesday, WikiLeaks may have won the tacky self-interest sweepstakes. The tweet, which was quickly deleted, suggested a deadly attack aimed at the American Embassy in Benghazi, Libya was justified by Julian Assange's refugee status inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

The Guardian assumed the tweet was written by Mr. Assange. Whoever posted the statement, they clearly weren't looking much further than their own navel, writing:

By the US accepting the UK siege on the Ecuadorian embassy in London it gave tacit approval for attacks on embassies around the world.

This was met with immediate harsh criticism by many who follow the account. Twitterer @GoldieSev responded, "Oh for fuck's sake Julian, everything isn't always about you! *Facepalm*."  Another tweeter, Gareth Winchester, wrote, "There is no seige (sic) on the Ecuador embassy in Knightsbridge. Stop lying."

The Telegraph quoted New Statesman and Vanity Fair writer and editor Jemima Khan, who called the tweet "absurd and shockingly offensive."

WikiLeaks posted two more tweets saying the same thing with different wording.

By the UK threatening to breach the Ecuadorian embassy in London it helped to normalize attacks on embassies, in general. It must retract.

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) September 12, 2012

By the US accepting the UK threat to storm the Ecuadorian embassy in London it helped to normalize attacks on embassies. — WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) September 12, 2012

The whistle-blowers followed up with an explanation of the deletion that implied the controversial post was deleted because perhaps people were too stupid to get it:

We have deleted and rephrased a previous tweet with the word 'tacit' in it, since the word is rare and was being misinterpreted.

— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) September 12, 2012

This certainly didn't help much, as at least one follower replied, "You're still assholes."

Julian Assange has more serious issues to worry about than pissing off his Twitter following. If he puts a toe outside the Ecuadorean embassy, he will be subject to arrest and extradition to Sweden, where he faces allegations he sexually molested two women during a junket there in 2010.

(Photo: Free Assange)

As rumored, Ecuador officially granted Wikileaks founder Julian Assange asylum today, according to the BBC. The Ecuadorian foreign ministry claims that its decision was based on the fact that Mr. Assange's human rights may be violated if he is extradited to Sweden for those "hilarious" sexual assault allegations.

Swaths of Mr. Assange's supporters are already celebrating on Twitter and beyond, but the U.K. government insists that Ecuador's decision doesn't change its obligation to extradite him:

Outside Ecuador's embassy in London, the BBC's James Robbins said news was slowly spreading through Mr Assange's assembled supporters.

Our correspondent said they were delighted, but the UK government is insisting it changes nothing.

They will still seek to arrest him and they will not grant him safe passage. If he steps out, he will be arrested.

Somebody grab the popcorn.