WikiLeaks to shift base to friendly Sweden

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STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- The founder of WikiLeaks says he will seek a publishing license for his controversial operation in Sweden where whistleblower protections are strong.

Julian Assange said he would apply for a Swedish publishing license this week in order to maximize legal protections for the sources who provide WikiLeaks with documents that some governments don't want released to the public.

"We're dealing with organizations that don't obey the law," Assange told the Swedish news agency TT. "We're dealing with intelligence agencies."

WikiLeaks made its biggest international splash earlier this year with the release of a huge number of documents from the U.S. military in Afghanistan.

TT said Sunday that WikiLeaks moved its computer servers to Sweden in 2007 and currently operates in the Scandinavian nation. Legal analysts, however, say a publishing license would ensure that WikiLeaks was fully covered by the whistleblower shield law.