[k-mcgrady]

From the article:

"The law which Britain is threatening to invoke in the Assange case is the Diplomatic and Consular Premises Act 1987.

It allows the UK to revoke the diplomatic immunity of an embassy on UK soil, which would potentially allow police to enter the building to arrest Mr Assange."

If they do that it wouldn't be an act of war, it would be legal. It definitely sets a terrible precedent though and even if it's legal Ecuador might interpret it as an act of war.

[vidarh]

Whether or not it is legal would be pretty much irrelevant, I'd think - it would be something every regime that dislikes Britain would pay close attention to for the purpose of pointing to the moment they decide they want to pick someone up from a British embassy.

I can't imagine Britain would be willing to risk the integrity of its own embassies in that way over Assange. It sounds like sabre-rattling, nothing more.

Consider that they did not even try to enter an embassy over the killing of WPC Yvonne Fletcher by someone at the Libyan embassy - a murder that achieved infamy in Britain. The Metropolitain Police laid siege to the Libyan embassy for 11 days and the government severed all diplomatic ties with Libya. But they did not try to enter.

If Thatcher was not prepared to do it, I very much doubt the current government would be willing to deal with the fallout.

[elemeno]

The Libyan case doesn't really apply - the suspected gunman was a diplomat and a Libyan national and there's a whole extra set of legal issues involved that don't apply to someone seeking asylum in an embassy for a non-political crime.

[rdtsc]

> a non-political crime.

I think some will disagree with the reason for asylum. I don't think there is any doubt that this is political. This is not about rape accusations. This is very political.

[pbhjpbhj]

Do you honestly believe Ecuador will initiate hostilities against NATO in order to protect a foreign citizen from due legal process in that persons home country?

It would surely be less effort and risk to lift him from the roof by helicopter and whisk him to a waiting jet James Bond style.

The second option seems far more likely to me.

[caf]

There's no current legal process against Assange in his home country.

[flogic]

There's what you say and what you do. I wouldn't be surprised if they called it an act of war. However, a violent response is highly unlikely.

[mc32]

They probably would not call it an act of war without backing it up --so I doubt they would. If they did bluff and get called, next time hostilities flared up with Peru or Columbia, they might not be taken seriously.