Hillary Clinton to testify in congressional Epstein investigation

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is scheduled to testify behind closed doors today before a congressional committee investigating the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, although it is unclear how much new information might come to light.

Clinton, the Democratic nominee in the 2016 presidential election, said she had little information to provide and accused the Republican-dominated committee of trying to divert attention from US President Donald Trump's ties to Epstein, who committed suicide in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.

She and her husband, Democratic former President Bill Clinton, initially refused to testify before the House Oversight Committee, but agreed after lawmakers initiated proceedings to hold them guilty of contempt of Congress.

Hillary Clinton is scheduled to testify in a closed-door hearing before the committee in Chappaqua, New York, near their main residence. Bill Clinton is scheduled for the same time on Friday.

The committee chairman, Republican Congressman James Comer of Kentucky, said transcripts of their conversations would be made public.

Hillary Clinton's ties to Epstein, writes Reuters, are unclear.

Bill Clinton flew on Epstein's plane several times in the early 2000s, after he left office. He denied any wrongdoing and expressed regret for his association with him.

According to Comer, Epstein visited the White House 17 times while Clinton was president.

Trump also hung out extensively with Epstein during the 1990s and 2000s, before Epstein was convicted in 2008. Comer said the evidence the committee collected did not incriminate Trump.

The US Department of Justice has released more than three million pages of documents related to Epstein in recent months, in order to fulfill obligations under a law passed by Congress.

The Justice Department sought to draw attention to the photos of Bill Clinton, but the documents also revealed Epstein's connections to a long list of business and political leaders, including Commerce Secretary Howard Latnick and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

Abroad, the documents have sparked criminal investigations into Britain's Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former Duke of York, and other prominent figures.