• Epstein was Democrat, he is not Republican’s problem: Trump.
• FBI says no credible evidence found against Clinton and others.
• Trump and Epstein were friends during 1990s and the 2000s.
  

The US Justice Department said on Friday it will fulfill President Donald Trump’s request to investigate Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to former Democratic President Bill Clinton and JPMorgan, as Trump sought to shift the focus from his relationship with the convicted sex offender.

The move comes two days after a congressional committee released thousands of documents that raised new questions about Trump’s relationship with the late financier, and marks the latest in a series of demands by Trump for federal law enforcement to pursue his perceived political enemies.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said Jay Clayton, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, will lead the investigation.

The Epstein scandal has been a political thorn in Trump’s side for months, partly because he amplified conspiracy theories about Epstein to his own supporters.

Many Trump voters believe Bondi and other Trump officials have covered up Epstein’s ties to powerful figures and obscured details surrounding his death by suicide in a Manhattan jail in 2019.

Trump has harnessed the Justice Department to target other perceived political enemies, notably former FBI Director James Comey and New York State Attorney General Letitia James, both of whom were charged after Trump replaced the prosecutor leading the cases.

‘Not how it’s supposed to work’

Legal experts say Trump’s demands could undermine the criminal cases that emerge from those probes, as judges can dismiss cases found to be motivated by “vindictive prosecution” — which both Comey and James have raised, though judges have not yet ruled on their requests to dismiss the cases.

Patrick J. Cotter, a former federal prosecutor, said it was “outrageously inappropriate” for Trump to order the department to investigate individual citizens, adding, “That’s not how it’s supposed to work.”

Along with Clinton, who socialised with Epstein in the early 2000s, Trump said he had asked the Justice Department to investigate former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, and Reid Hoffman, the LinkedIn founder who is also a prominent Democratic donor. All three men were mentioned in the 20,000 Epstein-related documents released by the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.

“Epstein was a Democrat, and he is the Democrat’s problem, not the Republican’s problem!” Trump wrote on social media. “They all know about him, don’t waste your time with Trump. I have a Country to run!”

JPMorgan said in a statement the US bank regrets its past association with Epstein, who was a client between 1998 and 2013, and did not help him commit “heinous acts.”

Clinton’s deputy chief of staff, Angel Urena, said on X, “These emails prove Bill Clinton did nothing and knew nothing. The rest is noise meant to distract from election losses, backfiring shutdowns, and who knows what else.”

In a post on X, Hoffman called on Trump to release all of the Epstein files, saying his only engagement with Epstein was to raise funds for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

“I want this complete release because it will show that the calls for baseless investigations of me are nothing more than political persecution and slander,” he said.

Summers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Justice Department’s decision to acquiesce to Trump’s demand came despite a July memo in which the department and the FBI said there was no “evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties” in the Epstein case.

“This systematic review revealed no incriminating ‘client list,'” the memo said. “There was also no credible evidence found that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions.”

Trump faces continued pressure over Epstein

Trump and Epstein were friends during the 1990s and the 2000s, but Trump says he broke off ties before Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution.

Trump has consistently denied knowing about the late financier’s abuse and sex trafficking of underage girls. Still, some of Trump’s most ardent supporters have accused his administration of a cover-up. 

Trump, who frequently engages with reporters, has declined to take questions over the last several days as new revelations about Epstein have become public.

The Republican-controlled House of Representatives is expected to vote next week on legislation that would force the Justice Department to release all of the material it holds on Epstein, who was facing federal charges of sex trafficking minors at the time of his suicide. 

The measure is expected to pass, even after House Speaker Mike Johnson repeatedly maneuvered to try to block the vote. It would also require the Senate to pass similar legislation and Trump’s approval to compel the Justice Department to act.

Just four in 10 Republicans in an October Reuters/Ipsos poll said they approved of Trump’s handling of the Epstein files, well below the nine in 10 who approve of his overall performance in the White House.

Epstein socialised with well-known figure

JPMorgan paid $290 million in 2023 to some of Epstein’s victims to settle accusations that it had turned a blind eye to his sex trafficking. The deal followed embarrassing disclosures that JPMorgan ignored internal warnings and overlooked red flags about a valued client. The bank did not admit wrongdoing in the settlement.

No credible evidence has surfaced that Clinton, Summers or Hoffman were involved in Epstein’s sex trafficking. All have previously denied wrongdoing and have expressed regret about their relationships with him.

Clinton flew on Epstein’s private jet several times before the financier’s 2008 conviction, while Summers accepted philanthropic gifts from Epstein while serving as president of Harvard University. Hoffman has acknowledged meeting with Epstein multiple times in professional situations.

Before his 2008 conviction, Epstein worked and socialised with a long list of well-known figures, including the UK’s former Prince Andrew, who was stripped of his royal title due in part to his association with Epstein.

Clayton, the prosecutor who will head the probe into Clinton, JPMorgan and the other figures, is a political independent who chaired the Securities and Exchange Commission during Trump’s first White House term.

• Oil tanker violates law by carrying unauthorised cargo: IRGC.
• Vessel departed from UAE and was heading to Singapore.
• Tanker was carrying 30,000 tonnes of petrochemical cargo.
  

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards confirmed on Saturday that they had seized an oil tanker in the Gulf off the country’s coast, a day after security companies determined they were likely responsible.

“Yesterday morning at 7:30, after a judicial authority ordered the seizure of the cargo of an oil tanker with the trade name Talara and the flag of the Marshall Islands, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) rapid reaction units of the naval forces monitored its movements and intercepted and seized it,” said a statement from the IRGC, the ideological arm of the Islamic republic’s military.

“The tanker was found to be in violation of the law by carrying unauthorised cargo,” the statement continued, adding it “was carrying 30,000 tonnes of petrochemical cargo and was heading to Singapore”.

The vessel had departed from Ajman in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and was heading south through the Strait of Hormuz when it was approached by three small boats, after which it made a “sudden course deviation”, maritime security company Ambrey said.

The US Navy had earlier said it was “actively monitoring the situation”.

“Commercial vessels are entitled to largely unimpeded rights of navigation and commerce on the high seas,” said the US 5th Fleet, which patrols the region.

The Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for global oil and liquefied natural gas, has previously been the scene of similar incidents.

Last year, the Revolutionary Guards seized a container ship, saying it had links to Israel, following a deadly attack on Iran’s consulate in Syria blamed on Israel.

• Mayor warns of “complex” blaze expected to burn long.
• Five factories hit, including chemical and plastics plants.
• 15 fire crews deployed to battle intense industrial blaze.

Powerful explosions rocked an industrial area and ignited a fire south of Buenos Aires on Friday night, officials said, with at least 22 people sent to the hospital.

The incident occurred inside the Spegazzini Industrial Park in Ezeiza, where multiple factories were affected. “The explosions and fire breaking out in the different factories are huge,” said Gaston Granados, mayor of Ezeiza where the events unfolded. He said the cause of the explosions was unknown.

TV footage showed thick smoke pouring from the industrial area, while dramatic videos on social media captured towering flames and a powerful shockwave sweeping through the area. 

The blast, felt across Ezeiza and Canuelas, shattered windows in nearby homes, and some residents told local media they saw an object fall from the sky moments before impact.

Hospital director Carlos Santoro said his facility had received 22 injured people. According to local media, five factories were hit by the explosions and fire. The industrial area features companies making tyres and chemical products, among other goods.

Granados said the flames affected several plants in the industrial park. “One of them is a chemical plant, where the warehouses caught fire, and where there are facilities related to agriculture and fertilisers. There is also a plastics plant called Plasticos Lago,” he told local media.

Granados described the scene as chaotic. “It’s all very confusing. We’re trying to ensure safety in the area and evacuate anyone who might be nearby. Fire crews are working to combat the intense fire that’s burning in all areas,” he said. The mayor confirmed that 15 fire crews responded to the emergency.

“It is a complex fire. It will be a long fire,” said Fabian Garcia, civil defence director for Buenos Aires province.

Granados also addressed early speculation that a small plane may have been involved, saying officials “can neither confirm nor deny that a plane crashed” until the fire is fully under control.

The owner of Sinteplast, a factory located within the industrial park, clarified that his plant was not the source of the fire, despite initial reports. 

“The explosion destroyed everything, gates, ceilings, some structures, and fire pipes were blown off. Fire brigades are on the scene. It was a terrible explosion. It didn’t reach our factory, but the shockwave shook everything,” he told local media.

— With additional input from AFP