Spotlight on global maelstrom whipped up by the Epstein files

PARIS – From royals to intellectuals, politicians to sports moguls, tech magnates and chief executives, the

latest tranche of published documents

from the investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has spotlighted a staggering

global web of influence.

Last week, the US Justice Department (DOJ) published a new cache of nearly three million government documents related to Epstein, who died in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.

The financier was long alleged to have been a purveyor of sex with underage girls to some of the world’s most powerful men.

The mere mention of a person’s name in the files does not, in itself, imply any wrongdoing.

However, the documents made public show, at the very least, connections between Epstein or his circle and certain public figures who have often downplayed – or even denied – the existence of such ties.

The latest files highlight just how extensive his connections were as he sought influence among the world’s most high-octane figures, spotlighting the dark underbelly of the global elite.

Strategy

From libertarian billionaire Peter Thiel to banker Ariane de Rothschild and former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, Epstein approached his contacts with targeted, tailored overtures – sometimes insistently.

He strove to forge ties with political leaders, especially in France, asking several contacts if they had connections to President Emmanuel Macron, former economy minister Bruno Le Maire or former president Nicolas Sarkozy.

His relationships transcended ideological boundaries, ranging from hard-right US figure Steve Bannon to influential US left-wing intellectual Noam Chomsky.

The continuous recruitment of young women, meanwhile, underpinned his activities, with the files corroborating the existence of a network of intermediaries tasked with identifying and introducing “assistants” to Epstein.

The files so far – released in three major tranches since December 2025 – show that misogyny, racism and homophobia permeated his correspondence, often including photographs of naked women.

The DOJ previously drew the ire of Epstein’s victims when released documents exposed their identities. The documents were subsequently withdrawn.

The archive also reveals Epstein’s detailed schedule and careful discretion. He often favoured phone calls and face-to-face meetings over written communication.

Fallout

While the DOJ has said it sees no grounds for new prosecutions, the latest release has triggered a landslide of repercussions for those mentioned in the files.

In the US, former president Bill Clinton and his wife, Mrs Hillary Clinton, have

finally agreed to be questioned

by a congressional committee about his friendship with Epstein.

Britain’s former minister and European Union trade commissioner Peter Mandelson, already fired from his role as ambassador to Washington, is now under police investigation, dealing yet

another blow to embattled British leader Keir Starmer

.

The pressure has also

intensified for Britain’s former prince Andrew

– now living far from Windsor – with the emergence of new photos showing him with an unidentified young girl and exchanges with Epstein.

E-mails to Epstein from Andrew’s ex-wife, Ms Sarah Ferguson, called the financier “the brother” she had “always dreamed of”. Other royals across Europe are under public scrutiny for the first time. Epstein’s previously unknown friendship with

Norway’s Crown Princess Mette-Marit

has not done her reputation any favours.

Many who had played down or even denied their ties to Epstein – including former Microsoft chief executive Bill Gates, former Norwegian premier Thorbjorn Jagland and Los Angeles Olympics chief Casey Wasserman – have seen their claims embarrassingly undercut.

Norwegian police said on Feb 5 that they had opened an “aggravated corruption” investigation into Mr Jagland over his links to Epstein.

Some figures have left their posts following the latest publication: Slovakia’s Mr Miroslav Lajcak, former minister and adviser to Prime Minister Robert Fico, and French film producer Caroline Lang, the daughter of former minister Jack Lang.

Mr Jack Lang himself was summoned to France’s Foreign Ministry to explain his links with Epstein, a source close to the French presidency told AFP on Feb 5.

Norway, meanwhile, dismissed high-profile diplomat Mona Juul from her post as ambassador to Jordan.

Hard to analyse

The sheer quantity of difficult-to-download documents, many of which are redacted or duplicated, makes analysing the files a mammoth task.

The four datasets posted online on Jan 30 amount to roughly 2.7 million pages, the largest batch released since late December. Most are PDF – short for portable document format – and contain either text or photos. An empty PDF is also published for videos, which are stored elsewhere.

E-mails may appear multiple times, with each reply becoming a new document that includes the previous messages. Some documents are scans of handwritten notes, which are sometimes illegible or incomprehensible.

Full download links were removed shortly after the initial publication, so reconstruction now requires downloading each folder individually. AFP