US strikes Iran for tenth straight night as Tehran hits Kuwait base; American death toll reaches 17Iranian missile hit US troop housing at Jordan base; Aqaba airport and port evacuatedHouthis declare Saudi naval blockade as fresh tanker attacks hit the Strait of HormuzBrent crude back above $90 as Gulf war rattles stocks, currencies and rate-settersTrump imposes 50% tariffs on Canadian goods under untested 1930 trade lawMerz signals cabinet reshuffle after Spahn quits as parliamentary leader over surrogacy rowBurnham takes office as UK prime minister, names Healey chancellor and calls TrumpRussia hits Kyiv with one of the war's largest ballistic barragesUkrainian drones and sea drones strike Russian oil terminals, power grid and Black Sea shipsFerry with about 133 aboard capsizes off Guyana; dozens missingAt least 50 Malian soldiers killed in jihadist–separatist ambush near AnefisChina uses WAIC to press its claim to lead 'global AI governance'Heatwave fuels major wildfires in Spain and Greece; nearly 50,000 hectares burnedUS strikes Iran for tenth straight night as Tehran hits Kuwait base; American death toll reaches 17Iranian missile hit US troop housing at Jordan base; Aqaba airport and port evacuatedHouthis declare Saudi naval blockade as fresh tanker attacks hit the Strait of HormuzBrent crude back above $90 as Gulf war rattles stocks, currencies and rate-settersTrump imposes 50% tariffs on Canadian goods under untested 1930 trade lawMerz signals cabinet reshuffle after Spahn quits as parliamentary leader over surrogacy rowBurnham takes office as UK prime minister, names Healey chancellor and calls TrumpRussia hits Kyiv with one of the war's largest ballistic barragesUkrainian drones and sea drones strike Russian oil terminals, power grid and Black Sea shipsFerry with about 133 aboard capsizes off Guyana; dozens missingAt least 50 Malian soldiers killed in jihadist–separatist ambush near AnefisChina uses WAIC to press its claim to lead 'global AI governance'Heatwave fuels major wildfires in Spain and Greece; nearly 50,000 hectares burned
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Epstein Files

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The affair began in February 2025, when the new US Attorney General Pam Bondi suggested in a Fox News interview that an Epstein client list was sitting on her desk, a claim that was later not confirmed. In July 2025, the Justice Department and FBI released an unsigned memo stating that there was neither such a list nor evidence of blackmail of prominent figures, and that Epstein had died by suicide, which triggered fierce pushback even from within Trump's own camp. At the heart of the dispute is the accusation that the government is withholding documents and shielding powerful people, while Trump's name reportedly appears in the files more than 1,000 times. In an initial release, heavily redacted documents were published, in which the names of abuse victims were inadvertently disclosed. Bondi acknowledged later redaction errors before the House Oversight Committee, but refused to provide information about her conversations with President Trump.

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Thursday, 16 July 2026Geopolitics

Epstein files: Vance concedes the government "completely botched" their release

US Vice President J.D. Vance conceded on Joe Rogan's podcast that his administration had "absolutely botched" the release of the Epstein files, laying much of the blame on former Attorney General Pam Bondi. At the same time, the Justice Department denied the state of New Mexico files for its own investigation. The dispute over withheld documents keeps piling pressure on Trump's camp.

Vice President J.D. Vance told podcaster Joe Rogan that the Trump administration had "completely botched" the communication around the Epstein files and should have released all the documents from the outset; former Attorney General Pam Bondi had "overstated what we had." Politico and the Guardian read this as a rare admission from the top of government, reflecting the persistent discontent even within Trump's own base. Al Jazeera reports at the same time that the US Justice Department is denying the state of New Mexico files that it considers crucial for its criminal investigation into alleged abuse on Epstein's ranch. The conservative Welt emphasizes Vance's assignment of blame to Bondi, while left-liberal papers foreground the fundamental charge of a lack of transparency. The dispute goes back to Bondi's suggestion of a client list in early 2025 and a contested memo stating that no such list existed and that there was no evidence of blackmail. How much is actually being withheld remains contested between the camps.

PoliticoThe GuardianDie WeltAl Jazeera