Georgia Howe

Other files revealed that Epstein paid Mandelson $75,000 between 2003 and 2004.

In a statement, Starmer's chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, took responsibility for Mandelson's appointment.

Starmer also released a statement showing appreciation for McSweeney's work, saying, "...our party and I owe him a debt of gratitude, and I thank him for his service."

British cabinet minister Pat McFadden said that blaming McSweeney for Mandelson's appointment is a mistake, saying, quote, it's a prime ministerial appointment and prime ministers have to take responsibility for the decisions that they make.

Conservative Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takeuchi has led her party to a landslide victory in this week's elections.

She now has a clear mandate from the people to strengthen ties with the U.S., increase defense spending, and kickstart Japan's economy.

The prime minister took a major gamble, calling national elections just three months into her tenure.

She was hoping to capitalize on a growing conservative movement in Japan, and it paid off.

Her coalition won overwhelmingly, now holding 354 of the 465 seats in the lower house of parliament.

That's more than a three-quarters majority.

President Trump congratulated Takeuchi in her victory, posting to Truth Social, quote, Sinai's bold and wise decision to call for an election paid off big time.

Hong Kong's Jimmy Lai has been sentenced to 20 years in prison, adding friction to U.S.-China ties.

Daily Wire senior editor Joel Needler has the story.

Lai is the publisher behind the popular Hong Kong newspaper Apple Daily.

The sentence was justified under a national security law widely used to crack down on critics of the Chinese Communist Party.

Lai, a 78-year-old Chinese-born British citizen, was convicted in December of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and published seditious material.

Lai was accused of supporting the massive pro-democracy protests that broke out in Hong Kong in 2019 and has been detained since August of 2020, spending more than 1,800 days in solitary confinement.

In December, President Trump said this about the case.

Six former Apple Daily employees were also sentenced Monday, receiving prison terms ranging from six to ten years.

The U.S.