WIKILEAKS founder Julian Assange has filed an appeal in a Swedish court over the ruling by a United Nations working group that his confinement inside the Ecuadorean embassy in London amounted to arbitrary detention.

The UN panel called on the Swedish and British authorities earlier this year to end the Australian’s “deprivation of liberty”, respect his physical integrity and freedom of movement, and afford him the right to compensation.

In May, a Stockholm district court upheld an arrest warrant against Assange, who is wanted for questioning in Sweden over a sex allegation, which he denies.

He fears being taken to the United States to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks if he goes to Sweden.

Assange filed an appeal at Sweden’s Court of Appeal of Svea on Tuesday, arguing that Sweden must comply with the UN group’s findings that his deprivation of liberty was unlawful and that Sweden must release and compensate him for the harm caused.

A representative of Assange’s legal team said on Tuesday: “The proceedings will test whether Sweden complies with its binding treaty obligations and whether it acts in good faith under the UN human rights system.”

WikiLeaks pointed out that the FBI and US Department of Justice informed a federal court in the United States that “prosecutive efforts” remain under way against WikiLeaks.

The alleged offences include espionage, conspiracy to commit espionage, electronic terrorism and general conspiracy.

Last week WikiLeaks released 20,000 emails showing election “rigging” in the US democratic primary process, leading to a number of resignations of senior executives.

Assange has been confined to the Ecuadorean embassy in London since July 2012, when he sought asylum to avoid extradition.