Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has described a UN ruling, that he has been arbitrarily detained by the UK and Sweden, as a "victory" for himself and the "independence of the UN.
Appearing on the balcony of the Ecuadorian embassy in London, he said that the UN ruling is "legally binding" in response to comments from the Foreign Secretary that he remains a "fugitive of justice".
Mr Assange is wanted for extradition on a rape accusation in Sweden.
A UN panel has confirmed its ruling that Julian Assange's lengthy confinement in the Ecuadorian embassy in London amounts to "arbitrary detention" by Sweden and the UK.
The head of the panel - which is officially titled the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention - has called on both countries to respect Mr Assange's "freedom" and allow him to seek compensation.
The WikiLeaks founder, who is wanted for extradition on a rape accusation in Sweden and has lived in the embassy since June 2012, has said he expects to be treated as a free man if the panel ruled in his favour.
The panel's judgment - which had been leaked a day before its formal announcement - is not legally binding but can be used to apply pressure on states in human rights cases.
Mr Assange filed his complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in September 2014, claiming his confinement in the embassy amounted to illegal detention.
A five-person panel became four before even looking at the Assange case and ended with the group divided and ridiculed by Philip Hammond.
From his 2010 arrest warrant to a UN expert panel's call for the WikiLeaks founder to be freed, review the key dates in the Assange case.
Read the full statement by the UN panel, calling for Julian Assange's "right to compensation" and for his "deprivation of liberty" to end.