LONDON—British judges ruled that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange can’t immediately be extradited to the U.S. to face spying charges, opening the way for months of further legal wrangling over the fate of the former hacker.

       Assange, 52, who has spent the past five years in a London prison, is fighting a drawn-out legal battle with the British government to avoid being sent to the U.S. to face trial for publishing thousands of confidential military records and diplomatic cables that painted a highly critical picture of America’s actions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

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