The U.S. Department of Justice will begin sharing its files related to Jeffrey Epstein with Congress on Friday, House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer said.

Washington

The Department of Justice is preparing to release a substantial collection of files related to Jeffrey Epstein to Congress. The release, which was initially scheduled for an earlier deadline, will now begin soon and will occur in stages to allow for the redaction of victims' names and any illegal content. 

The files are being provided to the House Oversight Committee, but it is not yet clear if any of the material will become public. In related developments, former Attorney General Bill Barr testified in a closed-door hearing, stating he had no information implicating former President Donald Trump and reaffirmed his belief that Epstein died by suicide. Some lawmakers expressed a desire to hear from Alex Acosta, the former U.S. attorney involved in Epstein's earlier non-prosecution agreement.

Justice Department set to begin sharing Epstein files with Congress

The Department of Justice is set to begin turning over some of Jeffrey Epstein's files to Congress this Friday. The DOJ was originally ordered by House investigators to produce files by noon today, but the deadline has been extended. So joining me now to talk about it, CBS News legal reporter Katrina Kaufman. She's here in studio. Good to see you. So what do we know about these documents that the DOJ is expected to turn over? Well, so we know they're supposed to start turning them over on Friday, Vlad. And this is a trove of files. They're supposedly hundreds of gigabytes of material, physical documents, videos, photos, audio. But they're also saying that they need time to redact this. So they're supposed to turn it over in batches. They're going to be redacting victims' names, any child pornographic material. But it's unclear in the end what exactly will come out of this. It's being turned over to Congress. We don't know if the public will still get to see these materials, but this is one step forward for the Department of Justice to be giving these materials to the House Oversight Committee. All right. Let's talk about something we discussed yesterday. Bill Barr met with members of Congress during a closed-door investigation hearing. What do we know about the testimony? Well, we know they questioned him for four hours, and Chairman James Comer stepped out during it and said that he had not said anything that implicated President Donald Trump, that he hadn't seen anything that implicated Trump. So that he didn't know anything about a client list, this is something people have been asking for. However, there were also Democratic representatives, Vlad, who came out and said they felt like they had more questions than answers after this. Jasmine Crockett said that she thinks the person they really need to call is Alex Acosta. He was the U.S. attorney in Florida when Epstein was being investigated. We talked about this yesterday. He's the one who gave him this non-prosecution agreement and would really know about this investigation, what happened there. So it's just a glaring thing that he has not been subpoenaed when they have all of these people that they're planning to talk to. Also when Barr left, reporters were shouting questions at him. Someone said, do you still think that Mr. Epstein died by suicide? And he seemed to answer, yes, I do. So that's one of the questions people have been curious about. Wow. So safe to say, to be continued? Yes. To be continued. All right. Katrina Coffman, always good to have you here. Thanks, Vlad.

Hamas has agreed to a ceasefire proposal for Gaza, but mediators are still waiting for an official response from Israel. CBS News contributor Robert Berger has the latest from Jerusalem.

Jerusalem

Middle East Conflict

Mediators await Israeli response to Gaza ceasefire proposal

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met China’s top diplomat on Tuesday and hailed the “steady progress” made in improving the bilateral relationship after a yearslong standoff between the nuclear-armed Asian powers.

New Delhi

India's Modi meets China's foreign minister to rebuild ties

Texas Democrats who ended a walkout found themselves shadowed by law enforcement officers to keep them from repeating the protest that stalled Republican efforts to redraw congressional districts and fulfill President Donald Trump's desire to reshape U.S. House maps.

Austin

Police escort Texas Democrats to prevent new redistricting walkout

Air Canada has reached a tentative agreement with the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), ending the strike that began over the weekend involving 10,000 members and disrupted travel for more than 100,000 travelers per day.

Toronto

Air Canada reaches tentative agreement with flight attendant union

Exiled former Hong Kong lawmaker Ted Hui hailed Australia's grant of asylum status as a key acknowledgement of the territory's human rights infringements since its authorities quelled massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Hong Kong Island

Ex-Hong Kong lawmaker granted asylum by Australia

Forecasters are giving urgent warnings to millions of people who live along the East Coast as Hurricane Erin churns in the Atlantic. The storm will not make direct landfall but is expected to bring dangerous rip currents.

East Coast of the United States

Hurricane Erin to bring dangerous rip currents to U.S. East Coast

Jasveen Sangha, a Los Angeles woman known as the "Ketamine Queen," has agreed to plead guilty to federal charges in connection with the death of actor Matthew Perry. Sangha could face up to 45 years in prison.

Los Angeles

"Ketamine Queen" to plead guilty in Matthew Perry's death

European leaders who converged on the White House for talks on the Russia-Ukraine war demonstrated a united front regarding Ukraine's security on Monday, underscoring the issue as pivotal for the entire continent, not just Ukraine.

Ukraine Invasion

EU leaders show cautious optimism following Zelenskyy, Trump talks

As Hamas reportedly agreed to some ceasefire terms that would include the return of more hostages, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered troops to take more of Gaza.

Israel digs in on Gaza takeover as Hamas softens on ceasefire

President Donald Trump said that the United States would help Europe in providing security for Ukraine as part of any deal to end Russia's war in Ukraine.

Trump tells Zelenskyy U.S. would help with security in a peace deal

Bolivia's presidential vote headed to an unprecedented runoff after elections Sunday that ended more than two decades of left-wing dominance in the Andean nation but signaled voters' trepidation about a major lurch to the right.

La Paz

Bolivia heads to runoff after historic defeat for the left

All Air Canada planes were grounded on Monday (August 18) after its 10,000 flight attendants refused a return-to-work mandate from the Canadian government.

Air Canada delays plans to resume operations

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the White House Monday (August 18) for his meeting with President Donald Trump and other European leaders about Russia's war in Ukraine. CBS News White House reporter Taurean Small has more.

Trump meeting with Zelenskiy, European leaders at White House

Hamas on Monday informed mediators that it had accepted a ceasefire deal proposal submitted to it the day before, according to international and Israeli outlets.

Reports: Hamas accepts latest Gaza ceasefire proposal

Hurricane Erin will bring dangerously rough surf to parts of the U.S. East Coast. Over the weekend, Erin's outer bands lashed Puerto Rico with up to 7 inches of rain and flooding parts of the island.

Erin expected to bring dangerous conditions to U.S. East Coast

Ahead of his Monday meeting with President Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymry Zelenksyy says his country will not give up any territory to Russia, even as the White House insists potential land swaps will be necessary. Willie James Inman reports.

Kyiv

Ahead of Trump meeting, Zelenskyy says won't give territory to Russia

Thousands of Israeli protesters demanded a deal to secure the release of hostages still held by Hamas in one of the biggest demonstrations since the war in Gaza began. Debora Patta reports.

Thousands of Israelis protest in Gaza, call for end to fighting

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flies to Washington on Monday under heavy U.S. pressure to agree to a swift end to Russia's war in his country, but determined to defend Kyiv's interests — without sparking a second Oval Office dust-up with Donald Trump.

Zelenskyy, European allies to meet with Trump to discuss peace

European leaders voiced strong support for Ukraine ahead of a Washington summit with U.S President Donald Trump. They emphasized unity, territorial integrity and security guarantees as essential to any peace deal.

Paris

European leaders stress unity with Ukraine ahead of peace talks

International condemnation and pressure from allies have done nothing to stop Israel's plan to displace the people of northern Gaza. Israel on Saturday (August 16) said it is preparing to move Palestinians from combat zones to southern Gaza.

Israeli military prepares to move Palestinians to southern Gaza

Thousands of people took to the streets on Sunday in a nationwide strike amid fears further fighting could endanger the 50 hostages believed to still be in Gaza.

Tel Aviv-Yafo

Dozens of Israelis arrested in protest to demand end to Gaza war

Russia continues to target Ukrainian cities firing hundreds of missiles and projectiles daily despite ongoing peace efforts, led by the United States. Ukrainian officials say their unwillingness to dial back their offensive reflects their lack of sincere interest in peace.

Five killed as Russia continues to pummel Ukrainian cities

U.S. President Donald Trump said that Ukraine should make a deal to end the war with Russia because "Russia is a very big power, and they're not," after a summit where Vladimir Putin was reported to have demanded more Ukrainian land.

Anchorage

Trump told Zelenskiy that Putin wants more of Ukraine, source says

Efforts by Texas Republicans to redraw the state's congressional maps got new pushback from protesters at rallies across the country Saturday. Nearly 280 events took place in 34 states, according to organizers.

"Fight the Trump Takeover" protests held across U.S.

West Virginia's governor says he will send up to 400 National Guard troops to the nation's capital at President Trump's request. They'll join other National Guard troops and federal agents already deployed with local police on the streets of Washington, D.C.

More troops arrive in D.C. at Trump's request

President Trump reversed course Saturday, saying he is no longer seeking an urgent ceasefire in Ukraine, but now agrees with Russian President Vladimir Putin that pursuing a peace deal is the best way to end the war.

Trump sides with Putin, preferring peace over ceasefire

Russian President Vladimir Putin described his meeting with President Trump as "frank, substantive and bringing us closer to making the necessary decisions." But the Alaska summit couldn't have been more far removed from the battlefields of Ukraine.

War-weary Ukrainians desperate for a ceasefire

In Ukraine, many do not believe Russia's president Vladimir Putin actually wants a ceasefire deal. They say Trump should stop making concessions to the Kremlin and for U.S President Donald Trump to demand an end to Russia aggression.

Ukrainians sceptical of Vladimir Putin’s intention

Being a Category 1 hurricane, Erin underwent a 'rapid intensification' which helped the storm to grow and strengthen to a powerful Category 5. Hurricane Erin won't make a direct hit on the U.S., but it will produce dangerous surf conditions for the entire East Coast.

San Juan

Hurricane Erin 'rapidly intensifies' to a Category 5

The Washington, D.C., police chief will remain in command of the local force following a settlement with the Trump administration over the federal takeover, but they are required to cooperate with the White House's immigration policy.

Breakdown