Assange, sporting a scruffy beard and unkempt hair, was dragged out of the building head-first in handcuffs by a group of seven men as his stunned supporters watched on as he screamed out 'the UK must resist'.
Shortly after, British authorities confirmed that the whistleblower was being held on behalf of the US, as well as for breaching bail conditions following rape allegations in Sweden dating back to 2010.
WikiLeaks confirmed Assange had been arrested under a US extradition warrant for conspiracy with American whistleblower Chelsea Manning for publishing classified information revealing war crimes, also in 2010.
It comes after Ecuador dramatically withdrew Assange's asylum status after seven years, blaming the Australian's 'discourteous and aggressive behaviour' in continuing to work with WikiLeaks while housed at the embassy.
Assange has always feared extradition to the US, where his lawyers have claimed he could face the death penalty for the mass leaking of highly-classified documents through WikiLeaks.
It was accidentally revealed in November that Assange had been secretly indicted by the US Justice Department, but the exact nature of the charges against the 47-year-old was not disclosed.
In a statement on Thursday, Ecuadorian president Lenin Moreno accused Assange of violating the terms of his asylum by 'interfering in internal affairs of other states' as well as 'blocking security cameras' and 'mistreating guards'.
The arrest came just 24 hours after Wikileaks accused Ecuador of an 'extensive spying operation', adding that it assumed intel had been handed over to the administration of US President Donald Trump.
Assange, who has overseen the publication of thousands of classified military and diplomatic cables through WikiLeaks, is currently in custody and is set to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court today.
News of his arrest was praised by Home Secretary Sajid Javid, who said 'no one was above the law', while Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt added Assange was 'no hero' and claimed he had 'hidden from the truth for years'.
In a statement, the Home Office said: 'We can confirm that Julian Assange was arrested in relation to a provisional extradition request from the United States of America.
'He is accused in the United States of America computer-related offences.'
Assange has not left Ecuador's diplomatic soil since 2012, when the country offered diplomatic protection from allegations of sexual assault in Sweden.
The case was eventually dropped as investigators were unable to formally notify Assange of the allegations, however, Swedish prosecutors revealed Thursday that the case could now be revisited following his arrest.
Moments after the arrest, during which Assange held on to a Gore Vidal book on the history of the national security state, WikiLeaks said Ecuador had acted illegally and 'in violation of international law'.
In a statement, Ecuador's president claimed to have asked Britain to guarantee that Assange would not be extradited to any country where he could face torture or the death penalty.
Javid said: 'Nearly seven years after entering the Ecuadorean Embassy, I can confirm Julian Assange is now in police custody and rightly facing justice in the UK.
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