In this August 18, 2014 photo shows WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange during a press conference inside the Ecuadorian Embassy in London where Assange has been holed up for two years.

STOCKHOLM: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Thursday lost an appeal against a Swedish warrant for his arrest to be questioned over alleged sex crimes.

“The Court of Appeal refuses Julian Assange’s claim that the detention order of the city court be set aside,” the ruling said.

The 43-year-old Australian, who has been holed up in the Ecuador embassy in London for two years to avoid extradition to Sweden was “detained in absence” by a district court in 2010 and an earlier application to drop the arrest warrant was dismissed in July.

Swedish prosceutors want to question Assange about accusations of rape and sexual molestation brought against him by two women in their 30s when he visited the country in 2010. He denies the claims.

A European arrest warrant has also been issued to support the Swedish move.

 
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