Will he be released?

Citing sources in the US Department of Justice, the newspaper writes that Washington is considering the possibility of Assange pleading guilty to a lesser crime.

The US Department of Homeland Security is reportedly considering allowing Assange to plead guilty to mishandling classified information, which could result in his release from a British prison and avoid extradition, the US newspaper reports.

The US is seeking Assange's extradition for leaking secret military files in 2010 and 2011, and the UK Supreme Court ruled that Assange should be extradited, rejecting claims that he could commit suicide in a US prison due to poor mental health.

In 2010, Assange's portal "WikiLeaks" published a video of the US Army, which shows dozens of people killed in an attack by "Apache" helicopters in Baghdad in 2007, including two Reuters journalists.

After that, WikiLeaks published thousands of secret classified documents and diplomatic reports criticizing the US world leaders, from Russian President Vladimir Putin to members of the Saudi royal family.

Assange is charged in the US with 17 counts of espionage, and if convicted, he could face up to 175 years in prison, according to his lawyers.

American prosecutors, however, claim that the sentence would not exceed 63 months.