MOSCOW, August 2 (RIA Novosti) – Edward Snowden, who is wanted by the United States for leaking classified information on US surveillance programs and who was granted temporary asylum Thursday by Russia, has decided where he is going to live, a Russian lawyer who helped him with his asylum bid said Friday.
"He has decided about his accommodation, everything is fine,” lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said.
Kucherena told journalists Thursday that Snowden’s whereabouts would not be disclosed in the interests of the former intelligence contractor’s safety, describing him as "one of the world’s most wanted fugitives.”
Snowden is wanted in the United States on espionage and theft charges after leaking classified information about the US National Security Agency’s surveillance programs. He spent more than a month in the transit zone of Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport after arriving in Russia on a flight from Hong Kong on June 23, and finally left the airport Thursday after receiving a year’s temporary asylum from Russia.
Washington has repeatedly called on Moscow to reject Snowden’s request and send him back to the United States to stand trial.
The human rights organization Amnesty International welcomed Russia's decision to grant Snowden temporary asylum as a "positive development" and called on the Russian authorities to respect Snowden’s rights.
"He should be allowed to travel freely, including outside of Russia, if he wishes,” Amnesty International said in a statement on its website Thursday.
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