Trump calls Epstein photo release a 'terrible thing' as he DEFENDS 'big boy' Bill Clinton

US President Donald Trump has today criticised the recent release of a plethora of photographs linked to Jeffrey Epstein as "a terrible thing". The leader even defended Bill Clinton and other political adversaries featured in the released images.

Notable figures such as Michael Jackson, Mr Clinton, Sir Mick Jagger and politician Lord Mandelson have been seen in the thousands of photos published online in recent days.

Despite being named in the files himself, Mr Trump maintained that most of the celebrities had innocently encountered Epstein over the years.

However, it's worth noting that Epstein was a convicted child sex offender who abused girls as young as 14. Speaking today following the photo dump, 79 year old Mr Trump said: "I know there are a lot of people that are angry about all the pictures of other people.

"I think it's terrible... This whole thing with Epstein is a way to try to deflect from the tremendous success of the Republican Party. I thought that was finished, a lot of people are very angry that this continues."

Regarding the former Democrat president, Mr Trump added: "I like Bill Clinton, I've always gotten along with Bill Clinton.

"I've been nice to him, he's been nice to me, we've always gotten along with him, I respect him. Bill Clinton's a big boy, he can handle it, but you probably have pictures of people that innocently met Jeffrey Epstein years ago."

As reported by the Daily Mail, the world leader primarily pointed fingers at Congressional Democrats for instigating the recent release.

However, Mr Trump did concede that Epstein had widespread connections during the 1990s and 2000s.

The release of information followed a statement from US deputy attorney general Todd Blanche, who highlighted the necessity to safeguard the victims of sex offender Epstein, leading to the forthcoming release of hundreds of thousands more documents.

Following the enactment of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the US Department of Justice was legally bound to publicise all files related to the Epstein investigation by midnight on Friday.

Epstein, a financier and convicted paedophile, was discovered dead in his cell at a federal jail in Manhattan, New York, in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was officially declared a suicide.

Both guards tasked with monitoring Epstein fell asleep during their shift and falsified their records. This glaring oversight was further compounded by the discovery that cameras in the holding area were either malfunctioning or broken.