live Israel-Lebanon ceasefire to be extended by three weeks, Trump says - Friday, 24 April
The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be lengthened by three weeks, U.S. President Donald Trump said in a post on social media website...
A new batch of photographs from Jeffrey Epstein’s estate has been released by the House Oversight Committee, shedding light on the financier’s connections with prominent political, business and cultural figures.
The release forms part of a wider collection requested by committee Democrats, which now totals about 95,000 images.
The 19 photographs made public on Friday show Epstein with several well-known figures, including former US President Bill Clinton, Steve Bannon, technology billionaire Bill Gates, entrepreneur Richard Branson, Britain’s Prince Andrew, Harvard President Emeritus Larry Summers and lawyer Alan Dershowitz. Many of them have previously been linked to Epstein, but the newly released images may offer further insight into the nature and extent of those associations.
Other images show Epstein posing with Bannon in a mirror photograph, Clinton with Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and another couple, and Gates with Prince Andrew. None of the images released is believed to depict sexual misconduct or involve underage individuals. The precise dates, locations and photographers are unclear.
House Oversight Committee Democrats said the photographs, drawn from Epstein’s estate, were released as part of a broader effort to ensure transparency and public accountability. Congressman Robert Garcia, the committee’s leading Democrat, described the release as "significant" and urged the Department of Justice to make all files public. "These disturbing photos raise further questions about Epstein and his relationships with some of the most powerful men in the world. We will not rest until the American people get the truth," Garcia said.
Lawyers for the estate said the photographs cover properties owned, rented, operated or used by Epstein between 1990 and 2019. They added that redactions were minimal and largely limited to nudity.
The White House criticised the release. Spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said Democrats had "selectively released cherry-picked photos with random redactions to try to create a false narrative." She accused the panel of politically targeting President Donald Trump, saying the Republican administration had already acted to support Epstein’s survivors and called for transparency.
A spokesperson for the Republican-led committee echoed those concerns, saying Democrats had released only a small fraction of the total images and framed the disclosure politically. "Nothing in the documents we’ve received shows any wrongdoing," the spokesperson said, adding that continued political focus risked overshadowing the interests of Epstein’s survivors.
The latest batch of photographs follows earlier releases of Epstein-related files, made public after President Trump signed a bill authorising access to the documents.
The release comes amid ongoing investigations into Epstein’s networks and the influence of his estate. Committee Democrats said they have so far reviewed about a quarter of the images handed over, with further examination and possible additional releases expected.
The disclosures have renewed public attention on Epstein’s ties to powerful figures and intensified calls for full transparency over his financial, social and political networks.
The U.S. military has intercepted at least three Iranian-flagged tankers in Asian waters and is redirecting them away from their positions near India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, shipping and security sources said on Wednesday, exclusively to Reuters.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards targeted three vessels, seizing two of them for alleged maritime violations and transferring them to Iranian shores, as U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington is extending its ceasefire with Iran until Tehran submits a proposal.
Two local trains collided head-on north of Copenhagen on Thursday (23 April), injuring 17 people, five of them critically, according to emergency services.
The U.S. military is redirecting at least three Iranian-flagged tankers after intercepting them in Asian waters near India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, shipping and security sources said on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Tehran said U.S. breaches, blockades and threats are undermining “genuine negotiations.”
The European Union is preparing its 20th round of sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine. The measures are close to being approved, after earlier delays linked to energy concerns in Slovakia and Hungary eased following repairs to the Druzhba oil pipeline.
China has urged the European Union to take its concerns seriously over new cybersecurity and digital regulations, warning they could create difficulties for Chinese companies operating in Europe.
Russia and Ukraine have swapped prisoners of war, according to officials on both sides. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said 193 prisoners, including soldiers and border guards, had been returned from Russia, some injured and facing criminal charges.
Türkiye and the United Kingdom on Thursday signed a wide-ranging strategic partnership agreement to boost bilateral cooperation, especially in defence. The deal, signed in London, signals a “new era” in relations between the two NATO allies.
The U.S. and the European Union are set to sign a memorandum of understanding on Friday to establish a partnership on the procurement and production of critical minerals, the U.S. State Department confirmed late on Thursday.
Russian emergency services have contained a major fire at the Tuapse oil refinery on the Black Sea coast, local officials said on Thursday, ending a four-day effort after a Ukrainian drone strike.
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