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Microsoft founder Bill Gates has cancelled his keynote speech at India’s flagship AI summit just hours before he was due to take the stage on Thursday.

Gates, who has faced renewed scrutiny over his past ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, withdrew to “ensure the focus remains on the AI Summit’s key priorities”, the Gates Foundation said in a statement.

The five-day India AI Impact Summit 2026 was meant to showcase India’s ambitions in the booming sector, with the country expecting to attract more than $200bn in investment over the next two years.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi had billed the summit as an opportunity for India to shape the future of AI, drawing high-profile attendees, including French President Emmanuel Macron and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Instead, it has been dogged by controversy, from Gates’s abrupt exit to an incident in which an Indian university tried to pass off a Chinese-made robotic dog as its own innovation.

So, what exactly went wrong at India’s flagship AI gathering and why has it drawn such intense scrutiny?

Why Gates’s appearance became an issue

Bill Gates was due to deliver a short but high-profile speech highlighting the opportunities and risks posed by artificial intelligence.

However, in recent weeks, several opposition figures and commentators in Indian media weighed in after emails featuring his name were released in the Epstein files in late January, questioning whether his presence was appropriate.

Despite the discussion, all appeared to be proceeding as planned earlier in the week. On Tuesday, the Gates Foundation’s India office posted on X that Gates would attend the summit and “deliver his keynote as scheduled”.

Then, on Thursday, hours before the scheduled speech, it released a statement saying that “After careful consideration, and to ensure the focus remains on the AI Summit’s key priorities, Mr Gates will not be delivering his keynote address.”

It added that Ankur Vora, president of the Gates Foundation’s Africa and India offices, would deliver the speech instead.

What are the alleged links between Epstein and Gates?

Bill Gates was named in documents related to Epstein released in January by the US Department of Justice.

In a draft email included among the documents, Epstein alleged Gates had engaged in extramarital affairs and sought his help in procuring drugs “to deal with consequences of sex with Russian girls”.

It was unclear whether Epstein actually sent the email, and Gates denies any wrongdoing.

The Gates Foundation, in a statement to The New York Times, called the allegations “absolutely absurd and completely false”.

What has India’s government said?

Very little.

Despite criticism and calls from opposition figures to explain the invitation to Gates, the Indian government has not directly addressed the controversy that culminated in Gates’s withdrawal.

While unnamed government sources told local media he would not attend the summit, officials stopped short of explaining why.

Asked about Gates’s participation, Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw declined to give a clear answer to reporters, while Modi made no reference to the issue in his public remarks.

Why are the Epstein files a sensitive subject for India?

The controversy surrounding Gates’s planned participation comes close on the heels of a series of disclosures in the Epstein files that have forced the Modi government on the backfoot.

In one email to an unidentified individual he referred to only as “Jabor Y”, Epstein referred to Modi’s historic visit – the first by an Indian prime minister – to Israel in July 2017.

Epstein wrote: “The Indian Prime minister modi took advice. and danced and sang in israel for the benefit of the US president. they had met a few weeks ago.. IT WORKED. !”

Modi’s visit to Israel – and his subsequent embrace of the Benjamin Netanyahu government, with military, intelligence and other ties strengthened over the past decade – had already drawn criticism from the opposition Congress party and others, who have accused him of reversing decades of Indian support for the Palestinian cause. India was the first non-Arab nation to recognise the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1974, and did not establish full diplomatic relations with Israel until 1992.

But the Epstein email turbocharged the opposition criticism of Modi’s Israel policy – with questions now also asked about whether it was influenced by Washington.

The Indian Ministry of External Affairs dismissed the Epstein email in an unusually sharply worded statement.

“Beyond the fact of the prime minister’s official visit to Israel in July 2017, the rest of the allusions in the email are little more than trashy ruminations by a convicted criminal, which deserve to be dismissed with the utmost contempt,” spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

But the Epstein cloud continues to hover over India.

The files also show that India’s current oil minister, Hardeep Singh Puri, exchanged dozens of emails with Epstein after he joined Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party in 2014.

In many of them, Puti appears to be taking Epstein’s help in getting US investors, such as LinkedIn’s Reid Hoffman, to visit India. In others, he appears to suggest that he had a fairly comfortable personal relationship with Epstein.

“Please let me know when you are back from your exotic island,” Puri wrote in December 2014, for instance, asking to set up a meeting in which Puri could give Epstein some books to “excite an interest in India”.

Puri, in a new conference, has claimed that he only met Epstein “three or four times”, but the Congress party has argued that the emails suggest a much closer relationship.

Gates’s work in India

The Gates Foundation has long been a key partner in India’s public health and development sectors, backing major vaccination drives, disease prevention campaigns and sanitation programmes.

At the same time, he has had vocal critics, including environmental activist Vandana Shiva, who has argued that Gates’s brand of “philanthro-imperialism” uses wealth to control global food systems.

Gates also faced heavy criticism after a 2024 podcast in which he said India was “a kind of laboratory to try things … that then, when you prove them out in India, you can take to other places” when discussing development programmes and the foundation’s work there.

‘Orion’ the robodog and other controversies

Beyond the fallout over Bill Gates’s cancelled keynote, the AI Impact Summit has faced several controversies.

One incident involved a robotic dog named “Orion”, which Galgotias University, based in the New Delhi suburban town of Greater Noida, presented as its own innovation.

Online users quickly identified the machine as a commercially available Chinese-made model, prompting organisers to ask the institution to vacate its stall.

The event also drew criticism on its opening day after facing logistical issues, including long queues and confusion over entry procedures, according to local media.

On Wednesday, large crowds were seen walking for miles after police cordoned off roads for VIP access.

Dhananjay Yadav, the CEO of a company exhibiting high-tech wearables, made headlines after he reported on social media that devices had been stolen from the company’s stand.

The Times of India later reported that two maintenance workers at the event had been arrested for allegedly stealing the wearables.

Attacks by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank have intensified recently, backed by Israeli forces.

A young Palestinian man was killed and four other people were injured when a group of Israeli settlers, backed by Israeli forces, opened fire on a village in the occupied West Bank.

The death of the young man on Wednesday evening, identified as Nasrallah Abu Siyam, 19, marks the first killing of a Palestinian by Israeli settler gunfire so far this year, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reports.

During the attack on the village of Mukhmas, located northeast of occupied East Jerusalem, Israeli settlers also stole dozens of sheep from local Palestinian residents, Wafa reports.

The attack on Mukhmas and other Palestinian towns and villages constitutes a “dangerous escalation in systematic terrorism and reflects a complete partnership between the settlers and the occupation forces,” Mu’ayyad Sha’ban, head of the Palestinian Authority’s Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, told Wafa.

Calling for international protection for Palestinian communities, Sha’ban said that settlers have now killed 37 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since October 2023, but the escalating violence would not deter Palestinians from holding onto their land.

Mukhmas and the adjacent Bedouin community of Khallat al-Sidra have faced repeated attacks by Israeli settlers, often occurring with the protection or presence of Israeli forces, according to reports.

The governorate of Jerusalem, one of the 16 administrative districts of Palestine, said in a statement that the killing of the young man by Israeli settlers was a “fully-fledged crime… carried out under the protection and supervision of the Israeli occupation forces.”

Translation: Martyr of the town of Mukhmas, Nasrallah Abu Siyam, who ascended after succumbing to his injury from settler gunfire during the attack on the town northeast of occupied Jerusalem.

The governorate said the attack was part of a dangerous surge of violence carried out by settlers in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and characterised by the widespread use of live ammunition, direct shooting at Palestinian citizens, as well as burning local Palestinian homes, damaging vehicles and property, and seizing land.

Armed settler violence is being supported by “pillars of the Israeli government”, foremost among them far-right ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, the governorate added, according to Wafa.

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank since 2023, and more than 10,000 people have been forcibly displaced.

Since the start of this year alone, almost 700 Palestinians in nine communities have been displaced due to settler attacks, including 600 displaced from the Ras Ein al-Auja Bedouin community in Jericho governorate, OCHA reports.

Earlier this week, Israel’s government approved a plan to designate large areas of the occupied West Bank as Israeli “state property”, shifting the burden of proof to Palestinians to establish ownership of their land in a longstanding situation where Israel has made it all but impossible to obtain property titles.

Described as de-facto annexation of the West Bank, the Israeli government’s decision has drawn widespread international condemnation as a grave escalation that undermines the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.

Israel’s attempted land grab and killings by settlers come amid a sharp increase in Israeli military operations across the occupied West Bank, where forces have intensified raids, carried out forced evictions, home demolitions, and other repressive measures in multiple areas.

A BRITAIN’S Got Talent star was accused of a child sex offence just days before she was found dead at home, an inquest heard.

Kerri-Anne Donaldson, 38, reached the semi-final of the ITV show in 2014 as part of the group Kings and Queens.

An inquest heard today Kerri-Anne was arrested on suspicion of “child sex offending” but no further details were revealed.

The dancer was detained on June 4, 2023, and questioned at a police station.

She was discovered dead at home in Farnborough, Hampshire, three days later by her sister Cara Donaldson.

There was a note at the top of the stairs urging Cara not to come inside alongside photos of her dog and family.

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The song “You are so Beautiful” was also playing when Kerri-Anne was found, the inquest heard.

The court was told the performer’s cause of death was given as hanging.

A post mortem also found she had non-fatal levels of medication in her blood, which were consistent with an overdose.

The inquest heard evidence yesterday from Detective Constable Benjamin Harris, of Hampshire Constabulary, who led the investigation into the unknown accusation against Kerri-Anne.

He said her accuser had let police know the dancer threatened to take her own life “if someone finds out” about the allegation.

Det Con Harris said he had considered the possibility her comments could be a “form of control” against the complainant.

He said: “In my experience in some offences it can often be said without wanting to carry it out.”

The officer told the inquest the suggestion of self-harm was “something we take very seriously” and he reported it to his senior officers and advised his colleagues who arrested Kerri-Anne.

He said following the interview, he graded the dancer’s risk of self-harm as “standard”.

The officer added: “When I spoke to Kerri, which was after the interview, in the cell she presented to me at that time that she was fine, so normal.

“She had no indication that she wanted to take her own life, when that was spoken about with her she gave no indication that would happen.”

Det Con Harris said Kerri-Anne told him she had seen a counsellor previously and added: “She knew how to get help and she was in no way considering harming herself.”

But he told the court “with the benefits of hindsight” he should have included a question about the complainant’s comments when making the risk assessment.

The inquest heard yesterday how following her release from custody, Kerri-Anne failed to return home – causing her family to report her as a missing person.

She was later found at a Travelodge hotel in Woking, Surrey, after taking an overdose.

Cara said her sister told an emergency doctor at St Peter’s Hospital in Surrey that she had wanted to kill herself.

Recalling the tragic statement, she continued: “I just wanted to hug her.”

Psychiatric liaison nurse Serina Juru, who carried out a mental health assessment after the overdose, said today she assessed Kerri-Anne as at a “high and imminent risk of suicide” and rated her risk as level 10 out of 10.

She told the court the dancer said she could be sent to prison if convicted of the offence and that she “could not face that”.

The nurse added: “She wanted to end her life because she was embarrassed about what had happened.”

Ms Juru said she offered Kerri-Anne an “informal” admission to hospital for further assessment or home care support but she refused both that day leading her to start a “high-risk care plan”.

She said the performer also told her that if she was discharged into the care of her sister Cara, she would wait for her to leave to look after her children and then take her own life.

The inquest heard Kerri-Anne was discharged from hospital the following day into Cara’s care when Ms Juru was not on duty.

Psychiatrist Dr David Enright, who had assessed her, said she was “calm” and no longer thinking about suicide.

But Cara said when she drove her sister home on June 6, the dancer told her she had made the decision to take her own life.

She claimed the family had not been given any care plan or advice on how to assist the star when they left the hospital.

Cara also said she asked her sister about the allegation and was told she was not guilty and that it had “all been constructed”.

She said she spent the evening with her sister and was reluctant to leave her alone, saying: “If you do anything, Kerri, that will always be on my shoulders.”

Cara continued: “[Kerri-Anne] joked ‘I am not going to do that’, so I left.

“One of the last messages was ‘Thanks for everything today’ and she gave a heart emoji, I just thought she was OK.”

But when Kerri-Anne did not answer the phone the next morning, Cara went round to her home and discovered her dead.

Describing her sister, she said: “Heart of gold, full of fun, brought happiness to life, especially mine, career-driven, adored her family, adored her friends, fantastic dance teacher, everyone loved her.”

She said Kerri-Anne had been on television a few times and added: “Her main passion was to choreograph dancing.”

The Kings and Queens Latin dance troupe were a big hit with BGT fans, making it all the way to the semi-final of the ITV show.

Kerri-Anne performed alongside Neil and Katya Jones and Kai Widdrington, all of whom became professionals on Strictly Come Dancing.

Following her death, Neil said: “Kerri Anne Donaldson – remember that name and please never forget it because it belongs to a woman who loved to dance, create and perform, she had the cheekiest laugh and a heart of gold.

“She hated getting in the car with me, but would always listen to my crazy ideas, we shared so many moments and stories and she was always the voice of reason.

“Kerri you were my friend and like my big sister.”

Ex-Strictly dancer Joanne Clifton also paid her respects to the “beautiful dancer”.

She said: “I have no words… This is just heartbreaking.. truly devastating.

“We’ve known you and shared the dance floor with you basically all our lives.

“Dance up there with the angels Kerri.. you beautiful dancer, you beautiful soul.”

Amy Dowden echoed those sentiments, writing: “So shocked and sad. Such a beautiful dancer and kind soul.

“Sending love to all your family and friends. Heaven has certainly gained an angel. Keep dancing up there lovely.”

If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.

Colombia’s largest criminal group paused talks after President Gustavo Petro pledged to target its leader, Chiquito Malo.

Colombia’s government has announced it will resume peace talks with the powerful Gulf Clan, also known as the Gaitanist Self-Defence Forces (ECG), after the criminal group expressed concern about a recent deal with the United States.

Tuesday’s announcement addresses a temporary suspension the Gulf Clan announced earlier this month, in the wake of a meeting between Colombian President Gustavo Petro and his US counterpart, Donald Trump.

Faced with US pressure to crack down on drug cartels, Petro agreed to prioritise three “kingpins” his government considered “high-level targets”.

One of those targets was the leader of the Gulf Clan, Jobanis de Jesus Avila Villadiego, known as Chiquito Malo.

The Gulf Clan responded by pausing talks with the Petro government until it received clarity on the scope of the government’s actions.

In a joint statement on Tuesday, the two parties said they had “overcome” any hurdles to the talks.

They also explained that the ongoing talks would be mediated by the Catholic Church and the governments of Qatar, Spain, Norway and Switzerland.

The Gulf Clan is one of several armed groups that have jostled for control of territory as part of Colombia’s six-decade-long internal conflict, which has pitted criminal groups, left-wing rebels, government forces and right-wing paramilitaries against each other.

With approximately 9,000 fighters, the Gulf Clan is considered one of the country’s largest cartels. The US designated it a “foreign terrorist organisation” in December.

Trump has pushed the Petro government to take more aggressive action against drug trafficking overall. In January, he even threatened to attack Colombia, saying that Petro needed to “watch his a**”.

But relations between the two leaders have warmed in recent weeks, particularly since Petro’s visit to the White House on February 3.

Previously, Colombian governments had taken a more militarised approach to addressing the country’s internal conflict. Colombia has long been considered a top ally in the US’s worldwide “war on drugs”.

But upon taking office in 2022, Petro sought to take a different approach, bringing armed groups and criminal networks to the table for negotiations under a programme called “Total Peace”.

The peace talks, however, have faced a series of setbacks, particularly in the wake of new bursts of violence.

In January, for example, Petro granted himself emergency powers following an outbreak of violence near the border with Venezuela between various armed groups, including the National Liberation Army (ELN).

That violence resulted in the suspension of peace talks with the ELN.

Petro, the country’s first left-wing president, has also faced pressure from the right to assure justice is carried out on behalf of the victims of drug trafficking.

His government has repeatedly rejected allegations that it has not done enough to stem drug trafficking in Colombia, which has historically been the world’s largest producer of cocaine.

Petro has pointed to historic drug busts, including one in November that resulted in the seizure of 14 tonnes of cocaine, as evidence of his government’s efficacy.

Criminal networks and other groups have long jostled to gain control of drug-trafficking routes.

Those clashes saw a spike after a peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a leftist rebel group that agreed to disarm in 2016.

The group’s dissolution left a power vacuum that other drug-trafficking organisations have sought to fill.

How to address Colombia’s ongoing internal conflict is set to be a major election issue in May, when the country chooses a new president. Petro is limited by law to a single consecutive term and will therefore not be on the ballot.

Silent Witness fans should watch another crime drama set in Scotland.

The alternative forensic drama for Silent Witness fans is the perfect binge.

Devotees of Silent Witness are being encouraged to discover another forensic drama that debuted on the BBC in 2021, following recent scheduling adjustments to the latest instalments.

The crime thriller centres on three female forensic experts – Emma Hedges (portrayed by Molly Windsor), Sarah Gordon (Laura Fraser) and Kathy Torrance (Jennifer Spence) as they piece together evidence in a murder investigation and secure a conviction.

Traces unfolds in and around Dundee, though viewers might find it intriguing that most of the BBC production was actually shot in Bolton, Manchester.

Created by Val McDermid and Amelia Bullmore, the drama tracks Emma Hedges, a laboratory technician returning to her native Dundee for a fresh position.

Beyond her professional duties, she harbours a personal quest to uncover the truth surrounding her mother’s killing.

Initially broadcast on Alibi, both series subsequently transferred to BBC One, with the final episode of the 12-part run transmitted in 2024.

Fraser portrays Sarah Gordon, a Chemistry professor at the University of Tayside who becomes Emma’s superior at SIFA.

Spence takes on the role of Kathy Torrence, a forensic anthropology professor at the University of Tayside and fellow SIFA colleague.

Viewers flocked to IMDb to express their opinions on the programme, with craigpetterson noting: “Set in Dundee, Scotland, great performances by the cast. Keeps the viewer hooked until the end.”

They added: “Congratulations to Alibi for commissioning and producing such a high quality production in Scotland.”

Barryrd enthused: “I was glued to Britbox watching the first season of this highly enjoyable show. This great drama consisted of several episodes and showed how a young woman, who lost her mother as a child, struggled valiantly to find out the truth of her mother’s death.

“The story had me transfixed to my screen and highlighted the science of forensics which is such a fascinating part of solving crimes in the 21st century.”

Bella-10103 praised the series as “addictive”, adding: “Binged watched this over a couple of days, absolutely loved Traces.”

Lyninbyron summed up: “I binge watched in one day. I had to! Riveting story, great cast but missed quite a bit of the dialogue due to fast, garbled lines.

“That said, I rate it a 10 for being excellently written. Series two please, can’t wait. Congratulations to all involved.”

Traces is currently airing on NOW.

**For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new Everything Gossip website**

New US court documents reveal ties between a key figure behind the Oslo Accords and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including financial links and visa favours. The revelations have sparked political fallout in Norway and renewed scrutiny of the Palestinian peace process’s legacy. Al Jazeera’s Nour Hegazy explains.

Carl Webster, Megan Walsh, Theo Silverton, Maggie Driscoll and Jodie Ramsey are in a killer’s firing line and tonight’s flashforward episode will keep fans guessing

The five Coronation Street characters at risk of a grisly death have been revealed. One of the ITV soap’s stars will meet their end the identities of the possible murder victims have been confirmed as viewers prepare to be taken back to the future in the show’s much anticipated flashforward episode. But will it be a villian on a much-loved character getting the boot?

Groomer Megan Walsh, manipulative Theo Silverton and twisted Carl Webster could be getting their comeuppance in April. But quirky landlady Maggie Driscoll is also in the firing like, as is strange newcomer Jodie Ramsey, who appears to have a whole load of family bagage to unload.

The groundbreaking episode begins with a police interview taking place on April 23rd 2026. As the drama unfolds a shocked and Betsy Swain is seen telling the detectives about finding the dead body of someone she knows.

Dressed in wedding clothes, the cop’s daughter explains that she had been at the marriage of her mum Lisa Swain to Carla Connor, but was heading into town when she made the shocking discovery. As the episode returns to the present day we begin to see how the behaviour of the five characters could lead to their possible death two months later.

Evil teacher Megan is caught up in a web of lies as she continues to groom impressionable teen Will Driscoll. Doing anything to protect her family, Maggie gives a fake alibi for Will to stop him being charged with the Christmas Day attack on Daniel Osbourne.

Carl has burnt all his bridges when he let Debbie take the blame for the Corriedale accident which saw Billy Mayhew perish. Since finding out Debbie is actually his mum and not his sister, Carl has pressed the self-destruct button and as he continues to goad both family and neighbours – he would have no shortage of people looking to settle a score.

Theo’s coercive control over Todd has reached new lows and with their wedding looming, will Todd finally confide in his friends about what has been going on before it is too late?

Despite initial reservations, the Platts have welcomed Shona’s estranged sister Jodie Ramsey into their home. But Jodie has been keeping secrets from them, and it seems she has got mixed up with some pretty shady characters in her past. Will trouble follow Jodie to Weatherfield, or could she upset people closer to home with her behaviour?

As the episode comes to a close we flash forward again to April 23 and the five characters are on the cobbles as Lisa and Carla’s wedding fireworks light up the night sky.

As the lights flicker a battered and bruised Carl, frantic Jodie, a menacing Maggie, a bloody-nosed Megan and a furtive Theo stare into the darkness. In the final moments the terrified scream of Betsy Swain fills the air – but which Weatherfield resident will be the murder victim?

Coronation Street airs weeknights at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITV X.

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SAVANNAH Guthrie is reportedly looking to quit The Today Show for good as she fears her fame made her mother a vulnerable target.

It comes just months after she filmed a segment for the show with her mother Nancy, 84, who has now been missing for two weeks.

Sources have said that the co-host is considering a permanent exit from the hit show after her mother was abducted from her home in Tucson, Arizona, at around 2am on February 1.

“This absolutely came out of the blue, and I think she’s really concerned that it was because of her job,” NewsNation’s Paula Froelich reported, citing sources. 

She added that Savannah, who is said to be a “mess” as the search for her mother enters its third week, fears her fame made her mother more of a target “with bad characters”.

Just months before she was taken, The Today Show filmed a segment with Savannah near Nancy’s $1 million home, which is now a major crime scene.

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In the NBC clip from November 2025, the mother-and-daughter duo paired up for a piece called “Savannah’s Arizona Homecoming” which also featured her sister Annie.

It documented the television star going back to her roots including her alma mater and El Charro, the oldest family-owned Mexican restaurant in America where she shared a meal with her family for the show.

“I have to come here every time I come home to Tucson,” Savannah said.

Her mother has featured in several segments for the show over the years since Savannah joined in 2012.

Despite admitting they are ‘exhausted’ by the search for Nancy, who is in poor health and in need of daily medication, cops have vowed they will find her and those responsible for her disappearance.

Investigators have now reportedly turned to high-tech scanners that can detect Bluetooth signals in an attempt to connect to Nancy’s pacemaker as they run out of leads and have no suspects.

A series of ransom notes sent to the family, law enforcement, and several news outlets are further muddying the waters, with a number of them turning out to be fake.

Fox News Digital reported that the Bluetooth devices have been attached to the bottom of police helicopters that are flying in low and slow, in grid-like patterns to try to locate her heart monitor device.

But, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said the search for Nancy could now go on for years as hopes seemingly begin to fade.

Earlier this week, investigators were seen combing through the grounds of her property, and searching inside a septic tank.

On Friday night, a number of people were reportedly detained in a SWAT raid at a nearby home after mystery DNA was recovered in the case, but cops later confirmed no arrests were made.

Meanwhile, investigators are still searching for the masked man captured in chilling doorbell footage taken from Nancy’s home on the night she vanished.

Federal agents have released new details about the suspect as they hope to cut down the number of public tips that have been called in with over 13,000 reported since February 1.

Officials are looking for a man who is around five-foot-nine-inches to five-foot-ten-inches with an average build.

He was seen in the footage wearing a black, 25-liter Ozark Hiker Pack backpack.

The reward for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the case has been increased from $50,000 to $100,000.

Timeline of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance

Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of Today show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, disappeared from her home on February 1, 2026.

Timeline:

• January 31: Nancy is last seen by her family
  • 5:32pm: Nancy travels to her daughter’s home for dinner, about 11 minutes from her own house.
  • 9:48pm: Family members drop off Nancy Guthrie at her home in Tucson. Her garage door closes two minutes later.
• February 1: Nancy is reported missing and a search begins
  • 1:47am: Nancy’s doorbell camera disconnects
  • 2:12am: Camera software detects a person moving in range of the camera. There is no video, and Nancy does not have a storage description.
  • 2:28am: Nancy’s pacemaker app disconnects from her phone, which is later found still at her house.
  • Around 11am: A parishioner at Nancy’s church calls the mom’s children and says she failed to show up for service.
  • 11:56am: Family members arrive at Nancy’s house to check on her.
  • 12:03pm: The family calls 911 to report Nancy missing.
  • 8:55pm: The Pima County Sheriff’s Office gives its first press conference and reveals some clues found at Nancy’s home caused “grave concern.” Sheriff Chris Nanos says helicopters, drones, and infrared cameras are all being utilized in the search.
• February 2: Search crews pull back. Nancy’s home is considered a crime scene. Savannah releases a statement thanking supporters for their prayers, which her co-hosts read on Today.
• February 3: A trail of blood is pictured outside Nancy’s home, where there were reportedly signs of forced entry. Nanos admits they have no suspects, no leads, and no videos that could lead to Nancy’s recovery. He and the FBI beg for more tips and accounts.
• February 4, 8pm: Savannah and her siblings release a heartbreaking video directed at their mother’s abductors asking for proof she is alive and saying they’re willing to work with them to get her back.
• February 5: FBI offers $50,000 reward for information on the case.
  • 5pm: First ransom demand deadline for millions in Bitcoin passes. Guthrie family releases demand to speak “directly” to the kidnappers, saying, “We want to talk to you and we are waiting for contact.”
• February 9, 5pm: Second ransom demand deadline, reportedly with “much more serious” conditions.

Limits to pardon powers

But there are limits to presidential clemency, and already, Trump has brushed against them.

In December, Trump announced that he would pardon Tina Peters, a former county clerk in Colorado who supported Trump’s false claims of voter fraud during the 2020 election.

Peters, however, was also convicted of state-level crimes, after she used her office to allow an unauthorised person to access her county’s election software.

A president may only pardon federal charges, not state ones. Peters continues to serve a nine-year prison sentence. Still, Trump has sought to pressure Colorado officials to release her.

“She did nothing wrong,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “If she is not released, I am going to take harsh measures!!!”

While Trump has argued that presidents have the “complete power to pardon”, legal experts have repeatedly affirmed that clemency is not without bounds.

Pardons, for example, cannot be used to avoid impeachment or to undercut the Constitution, nor can they be used to absolve future crimes.

Still, the question remains how to enforce those limits — and whether new bulwarks should be created to prevent abuse.

Love points to the state pardon systems as models to emulate. Delaware, for example, has a Board of Pardons that hears petitions in public meetings and makes recommendations to the governor. More than half of the petitions are granted.

Like other successful clemency systems, Love said it offers public accountability.

She measures that accountability by certain standards: “Can people see what’s going on? Do they know what the standards are, and is the decider a respected and responsible decision-maker?”

Trump’s sweeping actions, however, have prompted calls for presidential pardons to be limited or eliminated altogether.

Osler cautions against doing so: It would be a “permanent solution to a temporary problem”.

“If we constrain clemency, we’ll lose all the good things that come from it,” Osler said.

At a House Judiciary hearing on Wednesday, Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi was holding a document labeled “Jayapal Pramila Search History” that included a list of files from the unredacted Epstein archive accessible to lawmakers such as Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.).

That means over the course of a year Bondi’s Department of Justice has made time to speak with Ghislaine Maxwell — the New York socialite who helped Jeffrey Epstein run his billion-dollar child-sex-trafficking operation — and it made time to surveil a Democratic lawmaker who conducts oversight as a member of the Judiciary Committee. But it has yet to meet with the victims of Epstein’s crimes who want to talk.

When she took office, Bondi promised us transparency. She didn’t promise we would like what we would see from her.

The general public’s awareness of Epstein’s heinous crimes came with political baggage. However at this point, the question we all should wonder is: How does redacting the names of the men who helped fund Epstein’s operation benefit either political party? It may be good for the rich and powerful men trying to avoid accountability, but it’s not exactly a campaign platform.

Yet here we are as a country, chained to the same vocabulary used during an election, so a conversation that should be about right and wrong is accompanied by poll numbers and analysis about the midterm elections. As if the Justice Department’s refusal to interview rape survivors is an inside-the-Beltway topic and not reflective of a larger moral crisis. We have seen Congress kept out of session to avoid voting on the release of the Epstein files; we have heard equivocation about whether Epstein was a pedophile. We know Epstein’s island was a place where evil resided.

The investigation, or lack of investigation, into Epstein’s fellow abusers should not be seen by anyone as a political quandary in which the object of the game is to keep your party in power. The fact that there is a Republican-vs.-Democrat divide on accountability for sex abuse reveals a national moral crisis. When the abuse of children is viewed through a partisan lens, how else can one describe this period in America?

Fifty years ago, when President Carter was tasked with healing the nation after the Watergate scandal, he told Americans in his inaugural address that he was leaning on his faith, and one prophet in particular.

“He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?,” Carter said, quoting Micah 6:8. “This inauguration ceremony marks a new beginning, a new dedication within our government, and a new spirit among us all. A president may sense and proclaim that new spirit, but only a people can provide it.”

The Hebrew prophet Micah was from a rural area, not born into the wealth of the royal court. He was not being compensated by those who were. Instead, Micah reflected the voice of the people who were forced to live in poor conditions because of corruption. He described the actions of the morally bankrupt judges, political leaders and other elites in graphic, violent terms, condemning those “who hate the good, and love the evil; who pluck off their skin from off them, and their flesh from off their bones.”

This, he said, is what it is like being ruled by those who are not guided by what is good and what is evil, but rather what is most beneficial for themselves in the moment. When Micah spoke, it wasn’t about the latest poll numbers. His warnings about government corruption are not unique to any particular faith, nor are they married to any political party. They embody centuries of human history, a history that tells what happens to a society when power goes unchecked.

And be not mistaken, it was unchecked power — not any party affiliation — that provided Epstein and Maxwell with patronage. It was moral failure, not conservatives or liberals, that provided cover for their child-sex-trafficking ring.

So if for partisan reasons the abusers of children are not held accountable for their crimes, the language of politics fails us. The word for that is simply: evil.

YouTube: @LZGrandersonShow

THE desperate search for Nancy Guthrie is nearing a gut-wrenching two weeks after investigators said she was taken from her home against her will in the dark of night during the early hours of February 1.

The baffling case of the apparent kidnapping of the mother of popular Today co-anchor Savannah Guthrie has captivated the country, making her rural Catalina Foothills community ground zero for news outlets and true crime influencers.

Investigators believe Nancy Guthrie disappeared sometime after 2:28am on February 1 after her pacemaker disconnected from her phone, which was left behind.

In the days since her family reported her missing, Pima County and FBI investigators have conducted repeated searches at both Nancy’s and her daughter Annie’s homes, which are located about 4 miles from each other.

The mounting pressure to locate Nancy has reportedly led to clashes between Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos and the FBI.

Nanos has reportedly blocked federal agents from obtaining key evidence, including gloves and other DNA found inside Nancy’s home, according to Fox News.

Read more on Nancy Guthrie

BEHIND THE MASK

Ex-FBI agent breaks down ‘homeless’ theory clues from Nancy Guthrie footage

Federal investigators have reportedly asked Nanos for the items to be processed at the FBI’s national crime laboratory in Quantico, Virginia.

However, Nanos sent the evidence for testing at a private lab in Florida, according to the outlet.

Nanos disputed the claims, telling NBC affiliate KVOA that the reports were “not even close to the truth.”

But it has been Nancy’s unlit, secluded desert neighborhood that has made the investigation challenging for law enforcement.

Secluded area

The U.S. Sun was on the ground in Tucson and experienced first-hand the rugged stretch of desert terrain that surrounds Nancy’s home and those of her neighbors.

Nancy’s property is located on a roughly mile-long road with no street lights or cameras, dense vegetation, and away from hotels and commercial businesses.

The community is roughly 44.6 miles of desert, according to the Arizona Republic.

The affluent area is popular for hikers due to its mountainous terrain and hilly roads.

Unlit roads

At night and without a flashlight, it is impossible to see where you’re walking or what is in front of you.

Locals, who for decades have called the Catalina Foothills home, relayed to The U.S. Sun that the lack of lights in the community is to protect astronomical research at various observatories in Tucson.

A neighbor told The U.S. Sun that homeowners in the area are encouraged not to have landscape lights on their properties.

“If you have lights, landscape lights on your house, don’t point them up. You want them to point at the wall or down on the ground, not the sky,” said the woman, who asked not to be named.

The sound of chirping crickets and coyotes howling in the night is the only sign of life when you’re standing on the dark remote roads.

The same neighbor told The U.S. Sun that at night she often hears barking and whooping from coyotes around the neighborhood.

“Sometimes we have bobcats. But overall, we don’t have a lot of noise,” she added.

Off-road homes

Unlike traditional neighborhoods where homes are situated closely to one another, the layout of the Catalina Foothills is starkly different.

There are no sidewalks, and neighboring most homes is a desert environment with skin-tearing cacti and thick shrubs.

Most of the residential homes are spaced out off main roads, only have a ground level, and are tucked in behind long driveways.

Due to the dense shrubs, the darkness of unlit roads, and where many of the homes sit; even if doorbell camera footage is available from neighbors, they would not capture activity on local streets.

The lack of surveillance cameras on main roads has forced local and federal investigators to go door-to-door to nearby residences for any home security camera footage they may have.

Desperate search

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has laid out a timeline of what they believe were Nancy’s final hours before she was allegedly kidnapped.

On the afternoon of January 31, Nancy took an Uber to her daughter Annie and her son-in-law Tommaso Cionni’s house for dinner.

At 9:48pm that evening, Sheriff Nanos said Cionni dropped off his mother-in-law at her home.

In the early hours of February 1, Nancy’s doorbell camera disconnected at 1:47am.

At 2:12am, software from one of Nancy’s cameras on her property detected a person.

Then, at 2:28am, Nancy’s pacemaker disconnected from her phone.

By 11:56am, Nancy’s family arrived at her home after being alerted by a friend that their mother missed Sunday mass.

After not being able to locate Nancy, the family calls Pima County deputies to report her missing.

Roughly 10 minutes later, deputies arrive at the scene and uncover “concerning” evidence, including a trail of blood on the porch outside the home and Nancy’s missing doorbell camera.

The FBI has since obtained the doorbell camera footage from the night of Nancy’s disappearance, which showed a man wearing a ski mask using a plant from the lawn to obscure the camera’s lens.

Federal investigators described the man as average build, between 5’9′ and 5’10’, wearing a black, 25-liter Ozark Trail Hiker Pack backpack.

The FBI is offering $100,000 for any information leading to the man’s arrest.

Timeline of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance

Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of Today show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, disappeared from her home on February 1, 2026.

Timeline:

• January 31: Nancy is last seen by her family
  • 5:32pm: Nancy travels to her daughter’s home for dinner, about 11 minutes from her own house.
  • 9:48pm: Family members drop off Nancy Guthrie at her home in Tucson. Her garage door closes two minutes later.
• February 1: Nancy is reported missing and a search begins
  • 1:47am: Nancy’s doorbell camera disconnects
  • 2:12am: Camera software detects a person moving in range of the camera. There is no video, and Nancy does not have a storage description.
  • 2:28am: Nancy’s pacemaker app disconnects from her phone, which is later found still at her house.
  • Around 11am: A parishioner at Nancy’s church calls the mom’s children and says she failed to show up for service.
  • 11:56am: Family members arrive at Nancy’s house to check on her.
  • 12:03pm: The family calls 911 to report Nancy missing.
  • 8:55pm: The Pima County Sheriff’s Office gives its first press conference and reveals some clues found at Nancy’s home caused “grave concern.” Sheriff Chris Nanos says helicopters, drones, and infrared cameras are all being utilized in the search.
• February 2: Search crews pull back. Nancy’s home is considered a crime scene. Savannah releases a statement thanking supporters for their prayers, which her co-hosts read on Today.
• February 3: A trail of blood is pictured outside Nancy’s home, where there were reportedly signs of forced entry. Nanos admits they have no suspects, no leads, and no videos that could lead to Nancy’s recovery. He and the FBI beg for more tips and accounts.
• February 4, 8pm: Savannah and her siblings release a heartbreaking video directed at their mother’s abductors asking for proof she is alive and saying they’re willing to work with them to get her back.
• February 5: FBI offers $50,000 reward for information on the case.
  • 5pm: First ransom demand deadline for millions in Bitcoin passes. Guthrie family releases demand to speak “directly” to the kidnappers, saying, “We want to talk to you and we are waiting for contact.”
• February 9, 5pm: Second ransom demand deadline, reportedly with “much more serious” conditions.

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the military will work with the country’s police force to counter ‘gang wars’ that threaten ‘our democracy’.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he will deploy the army to work alongside the police to tackle high levels of gang violence and other crimes in the country.

Ramaphosa said on Thursday that he had directed the chiefs of the police and army to draw up a plan on where “our security forces should be deployed within the next few days in the Western Cape and in Gauteng to deal with gang violence and illegal mining”.

“Organised crime is now the most immediate threat to our democracy, our society and our economic development,” the president said in his annual state of the nation address.

“Children here in the Western Cape are caught in the crossfire of gang wars. People are chased out of their homes by illegal miners in Gauteng,” he told Parliament in his address.

“I will be deploying the South African National Defence Force to support the police,” he said.

South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world, with approximately 60 deaths each day involving killings in wars between drug gangs in areas of Cape Town and mass shootings linked to illegal mining in Johannesburg’s Gauteng province.

The South African leader said other measures to fight crime include recruiting 5,500 police officers and boosting intelligence while identifying priority crime syndicates.

“The cost of crime is measured in lives that are lost and futures that are cut short. It is felt also in the sense of fear that permeates our society and in the reluctance of businesses to invest,” Ramaphosa said.

Crime syndicates

Guns are the most commonly used weapon in South Africa, according to authorities, and illegal firearms are used in many crimes, despite the stringent rules governing gun ownership in the country.

Authorities in South Africa have also long struggled to prevent gangs of miners from entering some of the 6,000 closed or abandoned mines in the gold-rich nation to search for remaining reserves.

The government claims that the miners, referred to as “zama zamas”, or “hustlers” in Zulu, are typically armed, undocumented foreign nationals who are involved in crime syndicates.

In 2024 alone, South Africa lost more than $3bn in gold to the illegal mine trade, according to authorities.

Ramaphosa also said authorities would pursue criminal charges against municipal officials who fail to deliver water to communities where shortages are among the main issues that anger most voters.

“Water outages are a symptom of a local ⁠government system that is not working,” the president said of the worsening water crisis resulting from a drying climate and consistent failures to maintain ⁠water pipes.

“We will hold to account those who neglect their responsibility to ⁠supply water to our people,” he said.

Residents of the country’s biggest city, Johannesburg, held scattered protests this week after taps had been dry in some neighbourhoods for more than 20 days.

Ramaphosa also called out “powerful nations” who exert their “dominance and influence over less powerful states” and said South Africans could not consider themselves “free” as “long as the people of Palestine, Cuba, Sudan, Western Sahara and elsewhere suffer occupation, oppression and war”.

Ramaphosa, who became head of state in 2018, has led South Africa’s first-ever coalition government since ‌June 2024, when the ANC lost its parliamentary majority for the first time since ending apartheid 30 years earlier.

The coalition, which includes the pro-business Democratic Alliance, has helped restore confidence in Africa’s largest economy.

But widespread, persistent unemployment has not improved, and the government is under pressure to show it can improve service delivery.

Conversations about Culver City — the vibrant enclave on Los Angeles’ Westside often called “the Heart of Screenland” — usually include phrases such as “walkable” and “green spaces” and “Erewhon.”

So when U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi insinuated the city of 39,000 residents is a crime haven during a heated exchange with Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Los Angeles) Wednesday, local officials and personalities responded with statistics, memes and wry mockery.

Bondi slipped in the jab near the end of an arduous House hearing largely focused on the Department of Justice’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. Kamlager-Dove, whose district includes Culver City, hammered Bondi over deleted Department of Justice data linking far-right ideology with political killings, asserting that “there are violent, dangerous people out there with real threats.”

“There are — in your district,” Bondi responded. “Her district includes Culver City, and she’s not talking about any crime in her district. Nothing about helping crime in her district. She’s not even worth getting into the details.”

Hometown names stepped up to defend the burg by posting photos of clean streets, manicured parks and humming community events.

Political commentator and Angeleno Brian Taylor Cohen called the city “one of the most non-controversially safe” places in L.A., while Culver City-based comedian Heather Gardner said: “The worst crime of the century is that this woman had made a mockery of our justice system. Release the un-redacted files. Prosecute the REAL crimes.”

Kamlager-Dove shrugged off Bondi’s comment, saying Culver City was known for “breakfast burritos — not crime.”

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for Bondi to clarify her statements.

Crime in Culver City declined 9.7% in 2024 and was down an additional 6.1% in the third quarter of 2025 compared with the same period of 2024, according to the Culver City Police Department. Violent crime declined 3.9% in 2024 — the last full year of available data.

Over that period, murders dropped to zero while aggravated assault, kidnapping and robbery also fell. There were 26 cases of sexual assault in the city in 2024, compared with 25 in 2023. The only violent crime that saw a significant increase were simple assaults, which rose 8.1%.

The California Department of Justice and the FBI reported in 2024 that crime in the state had fallen to “among the lowest levels ever recorded.”

Mayor Freddy Puza, in an interview Thursday, described Culver City as a “strong and vibrant community” of people with no shortage of job opportunities at small businesses and corporations alike, including TikTok, Pinterest and entertainment giants Apple, Amazon and Sony.

He said the local government has been able to lower crime rates through community-based policing and by providing housing and social services to its unsheltered population. The mayor characterized Bondi’s retort as a “knee-jerk reaction” from an attorney general faced with damaging public trust concerns at her department.

“My read of it is that she’s trying to deflect,” he said. “I think she could really spend her time prosecuting the people in the Epstein files and making sure that information from the federal government is transparent.”

The city had seen no ideological violence, he said, adding, “but the potential for it is right around the corner. There’s no doubt that it is on the rise and the president is stoking it. People are becoming further and further polarized.”

At the hearing, Bondi faced sharp criticism over the Justice Department’s Epstein investigation — specifically over redaction errors in the release millions of case files last month. In one instance, the attorney general refused to apologize to Epstein victims in the room, saying she would not “get into the gutter” with partisan requests from Democrats.

Her performance has already prompted a volley of bipartisan demands for her resignation, including from conservative pundits including Megyn Kelly, Nick Fuentes and Kyle Rittenhouse.

Culver City was not Bondi’s only target Wednesday. She called Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) a “washed-up loser lawyer,” accused Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of suffering from “Trump derangement syndrome,” and branded former CNN anchor Don Lemon a “blogger.”

Since the hearing, however, she has stayed silent as locals continue to question her intel and chuckle over images of the pylon-protected war zone of Culver City.

“The worst crime in Culver City,” Gardener joked again on TikTok, “is that they charge $24 for a smoothie at Erewhon.”

Police say 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar killed her mother and stepbrother before carrying out mass shooting in BC.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has said he will shortly visit the remote British Columbia town of Tumbler Ridge, where nine people died in one of the country’s worst mass shootings, according to his office.

Police say 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, who had suffered mental health problems, killed her mother and stepbrother on Tuesday before shooting a teacher and five young students at the local school.

Van Rootselaar, who police say was born a male but began identifying as a woman six years ago, then died by suicide.

“The Prime Minister will be visiting Tumbler Ridge shortly in support of the community … [we are] working closely with the community and local authorities to finalise details based on their own immediate needs,” Carney’s office said on Thursday in a brief statement, which gave no details.

Across Tumbler Ridge, a town of about 2,400 in the Canadian Rockies, flowers and stuffed animals could be seen at unofficial public memorials.

“Hold your kids tight, tell them you love them every day. You never know,” a tearful Lance Young, father of 12-year-old victim Kylie Smith, told reporters on Wednesday.

Carney announced on Wednesday that Canadian flags will be flown at half-staff for seven days on federal buildings following the mass school shooting.

Honouring the victims

Police, who say they still do not have a motive, held a meeting with provincial officials late on Wednesday.

“They are working very hard – they recognise the public does need to hear information to fill that vacuum,” local provincial legislator Larry Neufeld told CBC News on Thursday.

Police said they had visited Van Rootselaar’s house on several occasions to address mental health issues and had twice taken her away for formal assessments.

British Columbia Premier David Eby said on Wednesday he had reached out to local health officials to ask for more details of the interactions.

At one point, police seized guns from the house but returned them after the owner, whose identity they did not disclose, successfully appealed the decision.

British Columbia on Thursday observed an official day of mourning. Provincial Lieutenant-Governor Wendy Cocchia, the personal representative of King Charles, Canada’s head of state, is scheduled to deliver a speech in the legislature to honour the victims.

In Toronto, the iconic CN Tower went dark at the top of every hour on Wednesday to honour the victims of the tragedy.

“Tonight the #CNTower will dim for 5 minutes at the top of each hour in honour of the victims of the attack in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia,” the CN Tower’s official social media account posted on Wednesday.

Recently released video shows the butler of Jeffrey Epstein trying to sell a supposed list of victims and clients during an FBI sting in 2009, revealing details of the billionaire’s operations well before the public became aware over a decade later.

Over the span of five hours on Wednesday, United States lawmakers questioned Attorney General Pam Bondi over the US Justice Department’s (DOJ) handling of documents related to convicted late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Bondi, testifying before the House Judiciary Committee, defended the DOJ’s handling of the release of the Epstein records and said there are “pending investigations” in the case.

Here are key takeaways from Bondi’s congressional hearing.

Why is Pam Bondi being questioned?

Bondi testified before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, in a hearing entitled “Oversight of the US Department of Justice”, but the Epstein files quickly became a primary focus.

Since the start of his second term, US President Donald Trump and his administration have consistently faced questions about the decision to withhold or redact documents related to Epstein.

That new law, called the Epstein Files Transparency Act, passed into law in November with bipartisan support. It requires the Justice Department to publish all of its documents related to Epstein in an easily searchable format.

Though the law allows for some limited redaction to protect the identities of victims, critics argue that scores of documents have been published with heavy redactions. Some of those blacked-out sections appear to shield the identity of powerful figures involved with Epstein.

During her opening statement on Wednesday, Bondi, a prosecutor from Florida, defended her record of addressing sexual abuse.

“I have spent my entire career fighting for victims, and I will continue to do so,” she said.

Epstein victims were present

With several victims of Epstein seated behind her in the hearing room, Bondi forcefully defended the department’s handling of the files related to the well-connected financier, an issue that has dogged her tenure.

During her opening remarks, Bondi deemed Epstein a “monster” and issued an apology to the victims.

“I am deeply sorry for what any victim, any victim, has been through, especially as a result of that monster,” Bondi said.

At one point during the hearing, Representative Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat from Washington, asked the Epstein victims to raise their hands if they had not had a chance to meet with a member of the Justice Department. All the victims raised their hands.

The victims included Danielle Bensky, who met Epstein in 2004 when she was 17 years old. She has accused Epstein of sexually assaulting her.

“There was such a lack of empathy today. There was such a lack of, honestly, humanity today,” Bensky told an NBC programme after the hearing.

Bondi clashes with Democrats

Congressional Democrats accused the US attorney general on Wednesday of engaging in a “cover-up” of the Jeffrey Epstein files and turning the Department of Justice into an “instrument of revenge” for Trump.

Maryland Democrat Jamie Raskin criticised the slow release of the Epstein files and the redactions made to the documents.

“You’re running a massive Epstein cover-up right out of the Department of Justice,” Raskin said. “You’ve been ordered by subpoena and by Congress to turn over six million documents, photographs and videos in the Epstein files, but you’ve turned over only three million.”

When pressed by Representative Jayapal, Bondi refused to turn and face the Epstein victims in the audience and apologise for what Trump’s Justice Department has “put them through”. She accused the Democrat of “theatrics”.

Texas Democrat Jasmine Crockett stormed out of the hearing after a spat with Bondi. “This is a big cover-up. And this administration is still engaged in it. In fact, this administration is complicit,” Crockett said.

During a heated exchange, Crockett said Bondi would be remembered as one of the worst attorneys general, prioritising loyalty to Trump over the law, before yielding the rest of her time.

Bondi shot back that Crockett had not even tried to question her and accused her of ignoring the fact that Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries had taken money from Epstein after his conviction, a claim Jeffries has denied.

The attorney general also clashed with Ted Lieu, a Democrat from California. Lieu asked whether Trump had attended a party with underage girls, a question Bondi deemed “ridiculous”.

Bondi insisted there was no evidence Trump had committed a crime.

Lieu suggested that her answer amounted to lying under oath, noting that Trump’s name appears repeatedly in the Epstein files. Bondi shot back: “Don’t you ever accuse me of committing a crime.”

Trump’s name appears multiple times in the released Epstein files, but not in connection with the sexual abuse of women. Rather, the records primarily show that he and Epstein were acquainted and had a social relationship.

For instance, Trump was listed as a passenger on Epstein’s private jet at least eight times between 1993 and the mid-1990s.

On February 1, Trump told reporters on board Air Force One about his name being mentioned in the latest tranche of Epstein files: “I was told by some very important people that not only does it absolve me, it’s the opposite of what people were hoping, you know, the radical left.”

Republicans join Democrats in questioning Bondi

Bondi accused Democrats of using the Epstein files to distract from Trump’s successes, even though it was Republicans who initiated the furore over the records and Bondi herself fanned the flames by distributing binders to conservative influencers at the White House last year.

Representative Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, who helped lead the effort to require the files’ release, accused the Justice Department of a “massive failure” to comply with the law as he questioned why billionaire Leslie Wexner’s name was redacted in an FBI document listing potential co-conspirators in the sex trafficking investigation into Epstein.

Bondi said Wexner’s name appeared numerous times in other files the department released and that the DOJ unredacted his name on the document “within 40 minutes” of Massie spotting it.

“Forty minutes of me catching you red-handed,” Massie replied.

On Tuesday, Democratic Representative Ro Khanna revealed the names of six men, including Wexner. The other names made public are Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, the head of Dubai-based logistics company DP World, Salvatore Nuara, Zurab Mikeladze, Leonic Leonov and Nicola Caputo. Al Jazeera could not independently verify their identities or affiliations.

Khanna said he was revealing the men’s names after he reviewed the files with Massie.

‘Trump orders prosecutions like pizza’: Bondi came to the president’s defence

Raskin and other Democratic lawmakers condemned the prosecutions brought by the DOJ against Trump’s political foes, such as former FBI director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

“You’ve turned the people’s Department of Justice into Trump’s instrument of revenge,” he said. “Trump orders up prosecutions like pizza and you deliver every time he tells you to.”

Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend, is the only person behind bars in connection with Epstein. She was convicted in 2021 of sex trafficking underage girls and is serving a 20-year prison sentence.

Trump has not been accused of any wrongdoing regarding Epstein but he fought for months to prevent the release of the files about his one-time friend.

A rebellion among Republicans eventually forced the president to sign off on the law mandating the release of all the records.

The move reflected intense political pressure to address what many Americans, including Trump’s own supporters, have long suspected to be a cover-up to protect rich and powerful men in Epstein’s orbit.

Trump’s repeated denials of any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes have come under scrutiny due to a 2019 FBI interview – contained in the Epstein files – with Palm Beach’s then-police chief Michael Reiter.

Reiter told the FBI that Trump had called him in 2006 – when the sex charges against Epstein became public – to say: “Thank goodness you’re stopping him, everyone has known he’s been doing this.”

Crime drama fans are being urged to watch the show if they haven’t already

Crime drama fans have highly recommended a “disturbing series” that made them feel physically sick, and it is available to stream.

Spanning across four seasons, True Detective has become a firm favourite amongst fans of police drama, with many branding it the “best show ever” and a binge worthy instalment.

Season 4 was released back in 2024, first premiering in the US on HBO and Sky Atlantic in the UK, with the series bringing in its highest viewing since it first debuted.

And it is streaming on Now TV and Sky as fans of crime drama are being urged to add it to their watch list if they haven’t already. Each season follows new detectives as they get to grips with a disturbing investigation.

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TV lovers can now get Sky TV, Netflix and Discovery+ for £15 per month with the new Essential TV bundle.

This delivers live and on-demand TV without a satellite dish or aerial and includes hit shows like The Last of Us and Squid Game.

Now TV teased: “The lives of police detectives as they chase criminals, using unconventional methods. The officers struggle to gain control of their own personal demons as they attack different cases.”

Despite news of a fifth season being given the green light by HBO, some viewers are only just tuning in to the show for the first time.

In a TikTok video, one fan had not realised a previous season had been released as they said Night Country was worth a watch, adding: “Honestly you need to watch it.”

They continued: “They are all really good, and i mean they are good.”

Admitting they were now “glued” to their televisions screen, the TV fan added: “I’m glued now that’s me for the day, I’ll be on this all day now.

“If you’ve not seen it and you’re looking for something good to watch, I’d highly recommend this because it really is good..”

One person replied: “The first ever true detective is the best by far.” Another wrote: “It’s brilliant but disturbing, it takes a lot to churn my stomach but this did.”

A third added: “First series totally unbelievably good.” A fourth commented: “The first series is unbelievable, one of my most favourite shows ever.”

With an impressive score on 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, audiences praised the “masterpiece” anthology series. One person wrote: “Outstanding. Really love Jodi and hope she keeps coming back to give us more. Rare talent!£

Another said: “I thought this season was possibly the best one yet, very spooky but also plenty of mystery and suspense and big coverups and murders to uncover.”

A third echoed: “It’s crime-horror-supernatural, but grounded in the realities and particular social circumstances of this small Alaskan mining town. Probably my favourite crime drama I’ve seen in a long time.”

A fourth penned: “One of the few things shows hooked me to the point where I “binge watched” the whole thing.”

The True Detective is available to stream on Now TV in the UK.

For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new **Everything Gossip** website.

Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein’s convicted associate and former girlfriend, invoked her Fifth Amendment right and refused to testify before a US congressional committee, with her lawyers saying she would only answer questions if granted clemency.

THE chilling second deadline for Nancy Guthrie’s ransom has passed despite Savannah promising she would pay the kidnappers who took her elderly mom.

The heartbroken Today star urged everyone to keep an eye out for anything suspicious as an exchange deadline written in a reported ransom note passed without word of Nancy’s release.

The ransom note indicated that Nancy could be harmed if the demand of a payment of $6 million in Bitcoin is not met by Monday at 5pm MST.

Hours before the deadline came to pass, Savannah returned to social media to inform the public they couldn’t continue this search alone.

“I wanted to come on and share a few thoughts as we enter into another week of this nightmare,” she said in the video.

“Law enforcement is working tirelessly, around the clock trying to bring her mom, trying to find her.

What we know about Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance…

“She was taken and we don’t know where. And we need your help,” she said.

Savannah thanked the public for their prayers, which she previously said were what her family needed most, but made it clear they could need witnesses find Nancy.

“I’m coming on not just to ask you for your prayers but no matter where you are, even if you’re far from Tucson, if you see anything, if you hear anything, if there’s anything at all that seems strange to you, that you report to law enforcement,” she said.

“We are at an hour of desperation.”

Despite everything, Savannah said she and her siblings believe their mother can feel the prayers, no matter where she may be.

“We believe that somehow, some way, she is feeling these prayers, and that God is lifting her even in this moment, in this darkest place,” said the anchor.

“We believe our mom is still out there.”

Investigators believe that the 84-year-old grandmother was abducted from her home in Tucson, Arizona in the early morning hours of February 1.

The deadline comes after Savannah and her siblings sent a cryptic message to their mother’s believed kidnappers promising to pay the ransom.

“We received your message, and we understand,” Savannah said in a video posted to Instagram on Saturday.

“We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her.

“This is the only way we will have peace. This is very valuable to us, and we will pay.”

SEARCH CONTINUES

Saturday’s message is the third the family has released appealing to the alleged kidnappers.

The FBI and Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos announced Friday that they were “aware of a new message regarding” Nancy’s disappearance sent to local news stations.

Previous ransom notes set a deadline for Thursday at 5pm.

After the deadline passed, Savannah’s brother Camron released a video asking for a way to speak with the purported kidnappers.

The change in tone in Savannah’s Saturday message has led experts to speculate if the Guthrie family has opened a line of communication with the ransomers.

Investigators have not shared which, if any, ransom notes are legitimate.

RANSOM QUESTIONS

The shifting deadlines and lack of proof of life has led some experts to doubt the legitimacy of the notes.

Former FBI Assistant Director Chris Swecker shared that he worries that bad actors are taking advantage of the situation and “playing with” the Guthrie family.

“I really think there’s a third party here that’s just playing with them, opportunists who think they can exploit this situation,” he said on Fox News Sunday.

Swecker added that the situation has not followed the pattern of a typical kidnapping-for-ransom plot.

“If this was a kidnapping, it would be a very simple matter to authenticate and provide proof of life,” Swecker continued, noting that no evidence has been “credibly authenticated at this point.”

“You have to allow for the possibility that this was something more or something other than a kidnapping,” he said.

The family has already been targeted by a ransom hoax.

On Thursday, Derrick Callella from California was arrested and charged for sending fake text messages demanding Bitcoin payments.

INVESTIGATION CONTINUES

Law enforcement officials were seen leaving Annie Guthrie’s property on Saturday night with a bag.

Investigators returned to Nancy’s property the following morning to search the water septic tanks.

Nancy was last seen on January 31, when she was dropped off at home by her son-in-law Tommaso Cioni after they had a meal with his wife and her daughter Annie Guthrie.

Nancy was reported missing by her family the following day when a parishioner at the mom’s church said she failed to show up for service.

Cops have only given grim updates so far, and admitted they have no suspects and no strong leads.

Mexican authorities say they are working to identify five other bodies after 10 workers were kidnapped last month.

Five of 10 employees who were abducted from a Canadian-run mine in Mexico last month have been confirmed as dead, authorities said.

Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office said on Monday that authorities have identified five bodies found at a property in El Verde, a rural locality in the state of Sinaloa, and are working to identify the remains of five other people.

“It is important to note that prosecutorial authorities have remained in contact with the victims’ relatives,” the office said in a statement.

“In the cases where the bodies have already been identified, they will be transferred to the states of Zacatecas in two cases, as well as to Chihuahua, Sonora, and Guerrero,” it added.

Authorities, who last week arrested four people in connection with the case, will continue gathering evidence to ensure the killings “do not go unpunished”, the office said without providing information on a possible motive.

Vizsla Silver, the operator of the Panuco gold and silver mine located near Mazatlan, Sinaloa, said earlier on Monday that it had been informed by a number of families that their loved ones had been found dead.

“We are devastated by this outcome and the tragic loss of life. Our deepest condolences are with our colleagues’ families, friends and co-workers, and the entire community of Concordia,” Michael Konnert, president and CEO of Vizsla Silver, said in a statement.

“Our focus remains on the safe recovery of those who remain missing and on supporting all affected families and our people during this incredibly difficult time,” Konnert said.

Vizsla Silver, based in Vancouver, reported on January 28 that 10 of its workers had been taken from its project site and that it had informed authorities.

Sinaloa has been rocked by escalating gang violence linked to a rivalry between factions affiliated with two cofounders of the Sinaloa Cartel, Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, both of whom are in custody in the United States.

The western state in Mexico saw more than 1,680 homicides in 2025, making it the most violent year in more than a decade, according to a tally by the Mexican newspaper Milenio.

British police are assessing a complaint that the former prince sent confidential trade reports to convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Buckingham Palace says King Charles III will “support” UK police assessing reports that the former Prince Andrew gave confidential information to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The statement on Monday came after police said they were examining reports that the former prince, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, sent trade reports to Epstein in 2010.

Thames Valley Police, which serves areas west of London, including the ex-royal’s former home in Windsor, launched the inquiry after news organisations reported on emails that suggest the then-prince sent Epstein reports from a 2010 tour of Southeast Asia he took as Britain’s envoy for international trade.

“The King has made clear, in words and through unprecedented actions, his profound concern at allegations which continue to come to light in respect of Mr. Mountbatten-Windsor’s conduct,” the palace said in a statement.

“While the specific claims in question are for Mr Mountbatten-Windsor to address, if we are approached by Thames Valley Police we stand ready to support them as you would expect.”

Thames Valley Police confirmed earlier on Monday that it has launched an inquiry following a complaint from an anti-monarchy campaigner.

“We can confirm receipt of this report and are assessing the information in line with our established procedures,” the police force said in a statement.

Emails from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to Epstein were among the more than three million pages of documents released last month by the United States Justice Department.

Correspondence unearthed in recent days appears to show that Mountbatten-Windsor forwarded copies of his reports from a 2010 tour of Southeast Asia to Epstein soon after he returned to Britain.

An earlier email appears to show the ex-prince sharing his itinerary for the two-week trip to Hanoi, Saigon, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong with Epstein.

Thames Valley Police began its inquiry after Graham Smith, chief executive of the anti-monarchy group Republic, reported Mountbatten-Windsor for suspected abuse of public office and violations of Britain’s Official Secrets Act.

The former prince, 65, has faced years of scrutiny over his friendship with Epstein, a relationship that has cost him his role in the royal family, titles and home. Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing, and has not responded to requests for comment since the latest release of Epstein files.

Reporting from London, Al Jazeera’s Milena Veselinovic said Mountbatten-Windsor was acting as the United Kingdom’s international trade envoy when the claims were made that he sent sensitive information to Epstein.

“This [allegedly] includes a confidential memo about investment in the Helmand province in Afghanistan, which was being financed at that time by the UK taxpayer,” she explained.

Royal family faces jeopardy

The British royal family continued its effort to insulate itself from the scandal on Monday, as Prince William and Princess Catherine issued their first statement about the latest batch of Epstein files.

“I can confirm that the Prince and Princess of Wales have been deeply concerned by the continued revelations,’’ a spokesperson said as William travelled to Saudi Arabia for an official visit. “Their thoughts remain focused on the victims.”

The jeopardy faced by the royal family could be seen on Monday when King Charles visited Lancashire, in northwest England. While most of the public clapped, cheered and waved British flags, one person shouted, “How long have you known about Andrew?”

Last week, King Charles forced Mountbatten-Windsor to leave his longtime home at Royal Lodge near Windsor Castle, accelerating a move that was first announced in October but was not expected to be completed until later this year.

The former royal is now living temporarily at Wood Farm Cottage on the king’s Sandringham Estate in eastern England. He is then expected to move into a more permanent home, which is currently undergoing renovations.

Ghislaine Maxwell avoids answering questions on alleged co-conspirators in case of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The associate and former girlfriend of convicted late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has declined to answer questions during a deposition before the United States Congress.

Lawmakers expressed frustration after Ghislaine Maxwell, currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in helping Epstein abuse teenage girls, invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

“As expected, Ghislaine Maxwell took the Fifth and refused to answer any questions,” Representative James Comer, Republican chairman of the House Oversight Committee, told reporters. “This is obviously very disappointing.”

“We had many questions to ask about the crimes she and Epstein committed as well as questions about potential co-conspirators,” he added.

Maxwell was subpoenaed to appear before the committee to discuss her relations with Epstein, but her lawyers stated that she would only testify if US President Donald Trump granted her clemency. Lawmakers had declined a previous request to grant Maxwell legal immunity before testifying.

“She [Maxwell] pleaded the Fifth, which under the US Constitution gives you the right not to answer questions on the grounds that you might incriminate yourself,” said Al Jazeera correspondent Alan Fisher.

“People were waiting to hear answers to important questions, but we got nothing from Ghislaine Maxwell,” he added. “What she did say, very briefly, was that she never saw any evidence of Donald Trump or [former US President] Bill Clinton involved in anything that was illegal. Many people suggest that was a deliberate ploy on her part to say, ‘Look, you buy my silence, but I want clemency.’ She’s appealing to both parties here to say, ‘I will clear the people that you care most about.’”

In a letter released on Sunday by Representative Ro Khanna expressing frustration with Maxwell’s refusal to testify, Khanna noted that Maxwell had spoken with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who previously worked as Trump’s personal lawyer, without invoking the Fifth Amendment.

“This position appears inconsistent with Ms Maxwell’s prior conduct, as she did not invoke the Fifth Amendment when she previously met with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche to discuss substantially similar subject matter,” he said.

Maxwell was moved to a minimum-security prison in Texas after meeting twice with Blanche last year.

Lawmakers such as Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse have called the decision “highly unusual” and questioned whether Maxwell had “been given special treatment in exchange for political favours” as President Trump’s own relationship with Epstein comes under growing scrutiny. Trump has strongly denied any wrongdoing and called the Epstein scandal a “hoax”.

Blanche has said that Maxwell was moved due to “numerous threats against her life”, without providing details. Maxwell has asked Trump to commute her sentence, which she was given in 2022 after being convicted on charges of sex trafficking minors.

She is the only person convicted of crimes related to Epstein, whose connections to a wide array of individuals at the height of political and economic power in the US and around the world have been revealed in the Epstein files.