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Trump Says Time to Turn the Page on Epstein Scandal

President Donald Trump smiles after signing a spending bill that ends a partial shutdown of the federal government in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
President Donald Trump smiles after signing a spending bill that ends a partial shutdown of the federal government in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
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Trump Says Time to Turn the Page on Epstein Scandal

President Donald Trump smiles after signing a spending bill that ends a partial shutdown of the federal government in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, in Washington. (AP)
President Donald Trump smiles after signing a spending bill that ends a partial shutdown of the federal government in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, in Washington. (AP)

US President Donald Trump made a fresh plea Tuesday for Americans to move on from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, even as it left a prominent British politician facing a criminal probe on the other side of the Atlantic.

Former British ambassador to Washington Peter Mandelson resigned from the upper house of parliament amid allegations he passed confidential information to late sex offender Epstein.

The fallout from the latest release of millions of documents linked to Epstein continued in the United States too, where former president Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary will testify in Congress later this month.

Republican Trump insisted once again that he had been cleared by the newest trove of files as he faced renewed questions at the White House over the disgraced financier.

"Nothing came out about me other than it was a conspiracy against me, literally, by Epstein and other people. But I think it's time now for the country to maybe get on to something else like health care or something that people care about," Trump said.

Trump added that it was "not a Republican, it's a Democrat problem," in a bid to turn the issue back to the Clintons, and away from the mention in the files of allies including his Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and billionaire Elon Musk.

"It's a shame," he said of the Clintons.

- 'Too bad' -

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic former US secretary of state who lost to Trump in the 2016 election, and her husband will now testify in a US House investigation into Epstein on February 26 and 27.

Neither Trump nor the Clintons have been accused of criminal wrongdoing related to Epstein's activities.

Trump spent months trying to block the disclosure of files linked to Epstein, before relenting late last year when an initial tranche of files was released.

Fresh documents released by the US Justice Department last week contained emails between prominent figures and Epstein, who died by suicide in prison in 2019, often revealing warm relations, illicit financial dealings and private photos.

The names of some alleged victims, who were supposed to be anonymized, were left unredacted, prompting them to petition a US federal court for an "immediate takedown" of the government website showing the files.

However, a US federal judge on Tuesday canceled a court hearing set for Wednesday, saying that "the parties were able to resolve the privacy issues."

US attorney general, Pam Bondi, wrote to the judge on Monday that all documents requested by victims or counsel had been removed for further redaction.

Nevertheless, Trump's efforts to move on from the Epstein scandal have been hampered as it engulfs key figures from royals to politicians at home and abroad.

"I don't know too much about it," Trump said when an AFP reporter asked him to comment on Mandelson's resignation. "I know who he is. It's too bad."

Mandelson appeared in the Oval Office in May 2025 and shook hands with Trump as they announced a trade deal, but was sacked in September over earlier Epstein revelations.

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World

Pope Leo Marks First Easter as Pontiff with Call for Hope Amid Global Conflicts

Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP)
Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP)
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Pope Leo Marks First Easter as Pontiff with Call for Hope Amid Global Conflicts

Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP)
Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP)

Pope Leo celebrated his first Easter Mass as pontiff with a call Sunday to exercise hope against “the violence of war that kills and destroys,” saying “we need this song of hope today” as conflicts spread around the world.

With the US-Israeli war on Iran in its second month and Russia’s ongoing campaign in Ukraine, Leo has repeatedly called for a halt in hostilities. In his Easter homily, the pope singled out those who wage war, abuse the weak and prioritize profits.

Leo, the first US-born pope, addressed the faithful from an open-air altar in St. Peter’s Square flanked with white roses, while the steps leading down to the piazza where the faithful gathered were filled with spring perennials, symbolically resonating with the pope’s message of hope.

The pontiff implored the faithful to keep their hope in the face of death, which lurks “in injustices, in partisan selfishness, in the oppression of the poor, in the lack of attention given to the most vulnerable.

“We see it in violence, in the wounds of the world, in the cry of pain that rises from every corner because of the abuses that crush the weakest among us, because of the idolatry of profit that plunders the earth’s resources, because of the violence of war that kills and destroys,” he said.

He quoted his predecessor Pope Francis in warning against falling into indifference in the face of “persistent injustice, evil, indifference and cruelty,” because “it is also true that in the midst of darkness, something new always springs to life and sooner or later produces fruit.”

He will later deliver the traditional “Urbi et Orbi” message — Latin for “to the city and the world.”

Christians in the Holy Land were marking a subdued Easter Traditional ceremonies at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, revered by Christians as the traditional site of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, were scaled back under an agreement with Israeli police. Authorities have put limits on the sizes of public gatherings due to ongoing missile attacks.

The restrictions also dampened the recent Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr holiday, as well as the current weeklong Jewish festival of Passover. On Sunday, the Jewish priestly blessing at the Western Wall — normally attended by tens of thousands — was limited to just 50 people.

The restrictions have strained relations between Israeli authorities and Christian leaders. Police last week prevented two of the church’s top religious leaders, including Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, from celebrating Palm Sunday at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

On Tuesday, the pope had expressed hope that the war could be finished before Easter.

World

France Condemns China’s Execution of a French Citizen Held on Death Row for 15 Years

A child holds a Chinese national flag near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing, China, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP)
A child holds a Chinese national flag near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing, China, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP)
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France Condemns China’s Execution of a French Citizen Held on Death Row for 15 Years

A child holds a Chinese national flag near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing, China, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP)
A child holds a Chinese national flag near the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests in Beijing, China, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP)

France said China has executed a French citizen convicted of drug trafficking after keeping him on death row for more than 15 years. 

Chan Thao Phoumy, 62, was executed in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, despite French authorities’ clemency appeals, the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement late Saturday. It didn’t say when the sentence was carried out. A Chinese court sentenced him to death in 2010. 

The ministry’s statement expressed “consternation” and added: “We particularly regret that Mr. Chan’s defense did not have access to the final court hearing, which constitutes a violation of his rights.” 

“We extend our condolences to his family, whose grief we share,” it said. 

In a short statement Sunday that didn't mention Chan by name, the Chinese Embassy in Paris said that China “treats defendants of all nationalities equally, handles all cases impartially and strictly in accordance with the law.” 

France abolished the death penalty by act of parliament in 1981, and has become a vigorous campaigner against its use and for its abolition everywhere. 

China's use of executions — carried out by firing squads or lethal injections — is shrouded in secrecy but has long been extensive. Amnesty International says China is the world's lead executioner, believed to sentence and put to death thousands of people annually. 

World

Iran Internet Blackout Is Longest Nationwide Shutdown on Record, Says NetBlocks

Iranians pose for pictures as they celebrate Iranian Nature's Day on the thirteenth day of Nowruz (Persian New Year), in a park in Tehran, Iran, 02 April 2026. (EPA)
Iranians pose for pictures as they celebrate Iranian Nature's Day on the thirteenth day of Nowruz (Persian New Year), in a park in Tehran, Iran, 02 April 2026. (EPA)
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Iran Internet Blackout Is Longest Nationwide Shutdown on Record, Says NetBlocks

Iranians pose for pictures as they celebrate Iranian Nature's Day on the thirteenth day of Nowruz (Persian New Year), in a park in Tehran, Iran, 02 April 2026. (EPA)
Iranians pose for pictures as they celebrate Iranian Nature's Day on the thirteenth day of Nowruz (Persian New Year), in a park in Tehran, Iran, 02 April 2026. (EPA)

Iran's internet blackout, first imposed well over a month ago, is now the longest nationwide shutdown on record, according to the monitor NetBlocks.

"Iran's internet blackout is now the longest nation-scale internet shutdown on record in any country, exceeding all other comparable incidents in severity having entered its 37th consecutive day after 864 hours," NetBlocks said in a tweet.

In another tweet, the monitor noted some countries had experienced intermittent or regional-level shutdowns over longer periods, while North Korea had never been connected to the global internet at all.