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The brother of Ghislaine Maxwell has told Sky News he believes prison officers have “physically abused” his sister and her treatment in a New York jail is a “fundamental abuse of human rights” that is “designed to break her”.

In his first UK TV interview, Ian Maxwell said US authorities have mounted a “disinformation campaign” against her.

He also raised concerns over whether she would receive a fair trial.

A photo of Ghislaine Maxwell with a 'black eye' was released by her lawyer in April
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(L) Ghislaine Maxwell in 2014. In April this year, a photo of her with a ‘black eye’ was released by her lawyer

The British socialite and former girlfriend of paedophile Jeffrey Epstein is awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking, which she denies. She is accused of procuring teenage girls for Epstein to sexually abuse.

In April, Ms Maxwell‘s lawyers released an image which appeared to show her with a black eye.

“I don’t see Ghislaine administering a black eye to herself,” Mr Maxwell said. “I think she has suffered some occasional physical abuse at the hands of her guards. Yes.”

Mr Maxwell also suggested his family would mount a legal challenge under human rights legislation.

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“We are going to take it to the UN,” he said. “Take it from me. America has to be held to account, and it will be.”

A spokesperson for the US Federal Bureau of Prisons said: “We are committed to ensuring the safety and security of all inmates in our population, our staff, and the public.

Ghislaine Maxwell has not been seen in public for weeks
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Ghislaine Maxwell has not been seen in public for weeks

“The BOP takes allegations of staff misconduct seriously and consistent with national policy, refers all allegations for investigation, if warranted.”

Epstein, a wealthy financier and convicted sex offender, took his own life in jail in 2019. He was awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.

Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein. Pic: Sky UK
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Maxwell was a former girlfriend and friend of paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, who died in jail in 2019. Pic: Sky UK

Mr Maxwell believes Epstein’s death was a failure of the US judicial system, and his sister is now being blamed.

He said: “There has just simply been a transference of presumed guilt on the part of Jeffrey Epstein without any corroborating evidence. Just simply because she had a relationship.

“He then dies, and they’ve got to find someone to pay the price.”

Ian Maxwell, brother of Ghislaine Maxwell, speaks to Sky News
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Ian Maxwell, brother of Ghislaine Maxwell, speaks to Sky News

Mr Maxwell believes the US authorities are responsible for a “disinformation campaign” against his sister.

“We start with a press conference designed to be prejudicial,” he said. “And then we have for the last two or three years a whole plethora of news programmes, documentaries and so forth, which are entirely one-sided.

“There isn’t any possible other way of viewing this, other than the way the accusers have set it up, and their attorneys, and that strikes me as a campaign designed to prejudice my sister in the eyes of the public.”

The Office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York declined to comment.

Ghislaine Maxwell’s lawyers have previously claimed their client has lost hair and over 15 pounds in body weight during her incarceration.

Mr Maxwell believes his sister’s treatment in prison has made it more difficult to prepare her defence, and questioned how Harvey Weinstein, Derek Chauvin and Bernie Madoff could all be granted bail pre-trial, yet his sister’s applications be repeatedly denied.

“It’s designed to break her,” he said. “That is just unjust. It is a fundamental abuse of human rights. And I find that quite shocking.”

“And I think that your viewers, if they are honest, should also find it shocking. Imagine if it was their mother or their sister or their daughter in the same position as my sister. You don’t think you’d kick up a hell of a fuss about it?”

A US federal judge has repeatedly ruled Ghislaine Maxwell poses a flight risk. Prosecutors cited her citizenship in three countries and significant wealth as factors as why bail should be refused.

With one month until Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial, her brother believes her reputation has been “comprehensively trashed” and is concerned she may not receive a fair trial.

“In the court of public opinion…. it seems to me that Ghislaine has already been convicted and the punishment that she is having meted out to her in prison as a pre-trial detainee is precisely what it is. Punishment prior to conviction.

“You are innocent unless and until you are proven guilty.

“But the mountain of allegations made against it and broadcasted and loud hailered around the world is so great, that I have to really ask myself, are we going to get a fair trial?”

Mr Maxwell said he has not spoken to his sister since her arrest, and he would be “shocked” if she was found guilty, but said she would likely appeal.

Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell attend Batman Forever/R. McDonald Event on 13 June 1995 in New York City. Pic: Patrick McMullan 1995/Sky UK
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Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell in New York. Pic: Patrick McMullan 1995/Sky UK

Jill Greenfield, a lawyer who represents some of Epstein’s alleged victims in the UK, said she had confidence in the US legal system and the trial was a vital opportunity for Ms Maxwell’s accusers.

“I think any alleged victim of a sexual assault will very painfully recount their memories of what happened to them.

“But by doing so they speak openly about something where they were, as they see themselves, a victim.

“And I think that can be quite cathartic for that alleged victim and [an] important part of the process to recovery.

“Standing up to an accuser in any sense is a really hard thing for someone to do and to be given and enabled to do that, through a court process, is really important.”

Ghislaine Maxwell is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Her trial is due to begin on 29 November.

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Stock markets suffer sharp drops after Donald Trump announces sweeping tariffs

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Stock markets suffer sharp drops after Donald Trump announces sweeping tariffs

Stock markets around the world fell on Thursday after Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs – with some economists now fearing a recession.

The US president announced tariffs for almost every country – including 10% rates on imports from the UK – on Wednesday evening, sending financial markets reeling.

While the UK’s FTSE 100 closed down 1.55% and the continent’s STOXX Europe 600 index was down 2.67% as of 5.30pm, it was American traders who were hit the most.

Trump tariffs latest: US stock markets tumble

All three of the US’s major markets opened to sharp losses on Thursday morning.

A person works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, March 31, 2025. Pic: AP
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The S&P 500 is set for its worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. File pic: AP

By 8.30pm UK time (3.30pm EST), The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 3.7%, the S&P 500 opened with a drop of 4.4%, and the Nasdaq composite was down 5.6%.

Compared to their values when Donald Trump was inaugurated, the three markets were down around 5.6%, 8.7% and 14.4%, respectively, according to LSEG.

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Worst one-day losses since COVID

As Wall Street trading ended at 9pm in the UK, two indexes had suffered their worst one-day losses since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The S&P 500 fell 4.85%, the Nasdaq dropped 6%, and the Dow Jones fell 4%.

It marks Nasdaq’s biggest daily percentage drop since March 2020 at the start of COVID, and the largest drop for the Dow Jones since June 2020.

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The latest numbers on tariffs

‘Trust in President Trump’

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN earlier in the day that Mr Trump was “doubling down on his proven economic formula from his first term”.

“To anyone on Wall Street this morning, I would say trust in President Trump,” she told the broadcaster, adding: “This is indeed a national emergency… and it’s about time we have a president who actually does something about it.”

Later, the US president told reporters as he left the White House that “I think it’s going very well,” adding: “The markets are going to boom, the stock is going to boom, the country is going to boom.”

He later said on Air Force One that the UK is “happy” with its tariff – the lowest possible levy of 10% – and added he would be open to negotiations if other countries “offer something phenomenal”.

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How is the world reacting to Trump’s tariffs?

Economist warns of ‘spiral of doom’

The turbulence in the markets from Mr Trump’s tariffs “just left everybody in shock”, Garrett Melson, portfolio strategist at Natixis Investment Managers Solutions in Boston, told Reuters.

He added that the economy could go into recession as a result, saying that “a lot of the pain, will probably most acutely be felt in the US and that certainly would weigh on broader global growth as well”.

Meanwhile, chief investment officer at St James’s Place Justin Onuekwusi said that international retaliation is likely, even as “it’s clear countries will think about how to retaliate in a politically astute way”.

He warned: “Significant retaliation could lead to a tariff ‘spiral of doom’ that could be the growth shock that drags us into recession.”

Read more:
Do Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariff numbers add up?

Tariffs about something more than economics: power

It comes as the UK government published a long list of US products that could be subject to reciprocal tariffs – including golf clubs and golf balls.

Running to more than 400 pages, the list is part of a four-week-long consultation with British businesses and suggests whiskey, jeans, livestock, and chemical components.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said on Thursday that the US president had launched a “new era” for global trade and that the UK will respond with “cool and calm heads”.

It also comes as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a 25% tariff on all American-imported vehicles that are not compliant with the US-Mexico-Canada trade deal.

He added: “The 80-year period when the United States embraced the mantle of global economic leadership, when it forged alliances rooted in trust and mutual respect and championed the free and open exchange of goods and services, is over. This is a tragedy.”

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Trump’s tariffs are about something more than economics: power

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Trump's tariffs are about something more than economics: power

Tanking stock markets, collapsing world orders, devastating trade wars; economists with their hair ablaze are scrambling to keep up.

But as we try to make sense of Donald Trumps’s tariff tsunami, economic theory only goes so far. In the end this surely is about something more primal.

Power.

Understanding that may be crucial to how the world responds.

Yes, economics helps explain the impact. The world’s economy has after all shifted on its axis, the way it’s been run for decades turned on its head.

Instead of driving world trade, America is creating a trade war. We will all feel the impact.

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PM will ‘fight’ for deal with US

Donald Trump says he is settling scores, righting wrongs. America has been raped, looted and pillaged by the world trading system.

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But don’t be distracted by the hyperbole – and if you think this is about economics alone, you may be missing the point.

Above all, tariffs give Donald Trump power. They strike fear into allies and enemies, from governments to corporations.

This is a president who runs his presidency like a medieval emperor or mafia don.

It is one reason why since his election we have seen what one statesman called a conga line of sycophants make their way to the White House, from world leaders to titans of industry.

The conga line will grow longer as they now redouble their efforts hoping to special treatment from Trump’s tariffs. Sir Keir Starmer among them.

President Trump’s using similar tactics at home, deploying presidential power to extract concessions and deter dissent in corporate America, academia and the US media. Those who offer favours are spared punishment.

His critics say he seeks a form power for the executive or presidential branch of government that the founding fathers deliberately sought to prevent.

Whether or not that is true, the same playbook of divide and rule through intimidation can now be applied internationally. Thanks to tariffs

Each country will seek exceptions but on Trump’s terms. Those who retaliate may meet escalation.

This is the unforgiving calculus for governments including our own plotting their next moves.

The temptation will be to give Trump whatever he wants to spare their economies, but there is a jeopardy that compounds the longer this goes on.

Read more:
Do Trump’s numbers on tariffs really add up?
Trump hits island home only to penguins with 10% tariffs

Chinese Vice President Han Zheng gestures to Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves following a photo session at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Florence Lo/Pool Photo via AP)
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Could America’s traditional allies turn to China? Pic: AP

Malcolm Turnbull, the former Australian prime minister who coined the conga line comparison, put it this way: “Pretty much all the international leaders I have seen that have sucked up to Trump have been run over. The reality is if you suck up to bullies, whether it’s global affairs or in the playground, you just get more bullying.”

Trading partners may be able to mitigate the impact of these tariffs through negotiation, but that may only encourage this unorthodox president to demand ever more?

Ultimately the world will need a more reliable superpower than that.

In the hands of such a president, America cannot be counted on.

When it comes to security, stability and prosperity, allies will need to fend for themselves.

And they will need new friends. If Washington can’t be relied on, Beijing beckons.

America First will, more and more, mean America on its own.

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‘A genius actor’, ‘firecracker’, and ‘my friend’: Tributes paid to Top Gun star Val Kilmer

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'A genius actor', 'firecracker', and 'my friend': Tributes paid to Top Gun star Val Kilmer

Actors, directors and celebrity friends have paid tribute to Val Kilmer, after he died aged 65.

The California-born star of Top Gun, Batman and Heat died of pneumonia on Tuesday night in Los Angeles, his daughter Mercedes told the Associated Press.

She said Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 but later recovered.

Tributes flooded in after reports broke of the actor’s death, with No Country For Old Men star Josh Brolin among the first to share their memories.

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Watch: Val Kilmer in his most iconic roles

He wrote on Instagram: “See ya, pal. I’m going to miss you. You were a smart, challenging, brave, uber-creative firecracker. There’s not a lot left of those.

“I hope to see you up there in the heavens when I eventually get there. Until then, amazing memories, lovely thoughts.”

Kyle Maclachlan, who co-starred with Kilmer in the 1991 biopic The Doors, wrote on social media: “You’ll always be my Jim. See you on the other side my friend.”

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Michael Mann, who directed Kilmer in 1995’s Heat, also paid tribute in a statement, saying: “I always marvelled at the range, the brilliant variability within the powerful current of Val’s possessing and expressing character.

“After so many years of Val battling disease and maintaining his spirit, this is tremendously sad news.”

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Heat co-star Danny Trejo also called Kilmer “a great actor, a wonderful person, and a dear friend of mine” on Instagram.

Cher, who once dated the actor, said on X that “U Were Funny, crazy, pain in the ass, GREAT FRIEND… BRILLIANT as Mark Twain, BRAVE here during ur sickness”.

Lifelong friend and director of Twixt, Francis Ford Coppola said: “Val Kilmer was the most talented actor when in his High School, and that talent only grew greater throughout his life.

“He was a wonderful person to work with and a joy to know – I will always remember him.”

The Top Gun account on X also said it was remembering Kilmer, who starred as Iceman in both the 1986 original and 2022 sequel, and “whose indelible cinematic mark spanned genres and generations”.

Nicolas Cage added that “I always liked Val and am sad to hear of his passing”.

“I thought he was a genius actor,” he said. “I enjoyed working with him on Bad Lieutenant and I admired his commitment and sense of humor.

“He should have won the Oscar for The Doors.”

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