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WikiLeaks Chief Condemns 'Smear Campaign'

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange (C) stands with his legal team Geoffrey Robertson, (R) Mark Stephens, (3rd L) Jennifer Robinson (2nd L) and spokesman Kristinn Hrafnsson, (L) as he addresses the media outside the High Court in central London, 16 Dec 2010

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Last updated on: December 16, 2010 7:00 PM

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he is the victim of a "very successful smear campaign," after being freed on bail by a London court over sexual assault allegations.

Assange spoke to NBC Today Show Friday a day after posting more than $300,000 in bail.

He is under house arrest in an English country mansion and is facing a possible extradition to Sweden where he has been charged with sex crimes.

Assange says he is more concerned with U.S. efforts to extradite him than he is with the extradition to Sweden.

Assange and his lawyers have voiced fears that U.S. prosecutors might be preparing to indict him on espionage charges because of the website's release of U.S. diplomatic cables.

Australian police have dropped their investigation of WikiLeaks, saying the website and its Australian-born founder have not broken any laws under their jurisdiction.

WikiLeaks is in the process of releasing a quarter million secret U.S. diplomatic cables, angering governments worldwide.

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