Hollande rejects asylum request from WikiLeaks founder

France’s president Francois Hollande has turned down a request for political asylum from WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

The Australian, who has spent three years living inside the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, wrote to Francois Hollande.

The letter, published by French daily newspaper Le Monde, said: "Only France is in a position today to offer me the necessary protection against, and exclusively against, the political persecution of which I am currently a target." France studied the request and decided it couldn't be granted given the legal ramifications, Mr Hollande's office said in a statement.

It added that Mr Assange is the subject of a European arrest warrant. The WikiLeaks founder has been granted political asylum by the Ecuador government following his sudden arrival at the embassy in 2012.

He is seeking to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he faces sex allegations by two women, claims he denies.