WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is out of jail after a judge rejected an appeal by British prosecutors to keep him behind bars.
After being equipped with an electronic monitor, Assange was formally released on 200,000 pounds ($314,000) bail.
He had a brief chance to address supporters in London, after giving them a thumbs-up in the courtroom when he was granted bail earlier in the day. Assange told reporters he was glad to breathe fresh air and he intended to continue to fight his extradition to Sweden.
"I hope to continue my work and continue to protest my innocence in this matter," he said, as he was surrounded by his legal team.
During the Thursday hearing, High Court Justice Duncan Ouseley rejected arguments that Assange had to stay in jail and granted Assange conditional bail.
Inside a packed courtroom of lawyers and journalists, Ouseley said he believes Assange has "some desire to clear his name" and was unlikely to skip future court hearings.
If Assange did flee, "he would diminish himself in the eyes of his many supporters," the judge said.
Ouseley outlined the bail conditions that Assange would have to meet: He will have to report to police on a daily basis, wear an electronic tag and meet a curfew.
Assange will stay at a 10-bedroom mansion in eastern England that is owned by the founder of London's Frontline Club for journalists.
Assange surrendered to British authorities last week after a Swedish warrant sought his arrest for questioning about alleged sex crimes. The 39-year-old Australian says he is innocent, though he has not surrendered to Sweden's request for his extradition.
A District Court judge granted Assange a conditional release two days ago, but prosecutors immediately appealed the decision. The High Court rejected that appeal on Thursday.
Prosecutors had tried to convince the High Court judge that Assange was a flight risk because he has neither residence nor family in Britain. They also argued that charges he faces in Sweden are serious.
The WikiLeaks website has begun a controversial process of posting 250,000 U.S. diplomatic cables on the Internet.
The previously secret dispatches have revealed the way the U.S. views various issues around the globe and the way that foreign diplomats communicate with Washington.
With files from The Associated Press
